Crimson Fracture
by Ambrax Demise
Summary: In a world where strength is the embodiment of hate, how will our favorite blonde cope with everyday actions. Being taken in at a young age by his Sensei, he learns of his heritage and burden. Will he fall as another victim of hate and destroy those who never gave him a chance. See how the elemental nations fare when Naruto Uzumaki explores his true abilities to the fullest.
1. Chapter 1 - New Beginnings

Crimson Fracture

A/N: Main changes include Naruto not getting attached to Konoha and getting introduced to the kyuubi at a young age. The first couple of introduction chapters will deviate from the main story but after it gets situated it will follow cannon story line with resultant changes.

Begin!

**Bold – **Kyuubi talking

_Italics _– Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics _**– Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 1: New Beginnings

A 4 year old Naruto Uzumaki was currently running for his life. All he tried to do was buy a piece of bread and the villagers went crazy. Why you might ask? Because it was the eve of the Kyuubi's attack on Konoha, and consequences be damned the villagers would fight for their loved ones. But Naruto wasn't aware of that, all he knew was every year after his jiisan gave him his birthday gift an angry mob would try and kill him, last year they almost succeeded...

Flashback

"Get the demon!"

"Kill the brat!"

Naruto was currently running out of time but he knew if he could make it to the Hokage tower he would survive.

_"Which way was it, left or right... RIGHT"_

he was met by a dead end and a fist to the back of the head.

"Finally I can kill the demon brat who took my wife and kid from me," one of the mob members spat out venomously.

"Sir," Naruto's voice was no more than a whisper, "I don't who you are, but how do you know me?" The fear was radiating off the child, his voice slowly rising into a cry, "Why do you call me a demon, why, why, WHY!"

"KILL HIM BEFORE HE MAKES ANY MORE NOISE!"

Naruto expected the end, he was waiting to meet the Shinigami maybe get some closure of who his parents were, relishing in the moment he was surprised when he felt... Nothing, he only heard about five thunks and then silence. Soon footsteps could be heard, and it sounded like they were stepping in puddles, _"but it hasn't rained in weeks,"_ Naruto thought.

Looking up Naruto saw death for the first time, there in front of him was the angry mob all dead with a lone ANBU starring at him, as if the bodies didn't even faze him. After starring for a while the ANBU just pulled his kunai out of their skulls gave a slight nod and left. Surprisingly Naruto didn't feel that much different either, looking upon the bodies Naruto could of swore he heard a voice, it almost growled at him? And it said

**"Embrace the emotion kit; you have a long way to go..."**

End of Flashback

Coming back to reality Naruto realized he was slowly getting away from the civilians, thinking he was safe Naruto slowed down and took in his surroundings. He was in what he suspected was a clans residential area, if all the buildings and space indicated anything, plus all the people had the Uchiha symbol on their backs.

_"This could be bad I'm not liked around here. Let's go before anyone realizes that I'm her-,"_ Naruto stopped his train of thought when he felt a hand grip his shoulder hard.

* * *

Itachi Uchiha a prodigy among geniuses. He graduated faster than all his peers and mastered all the jutsus he was taught. Held as the next clan heir he had a fully developed three tomeo sharingnan. But none of that mattered; Itachi hated all the praise he received. That was why he went around wearing his stoic facade. So today when he finally got a few minutes away from his controlling father and pestering brother he thought it was going to be perfect. What he didn't expect was when he was about to take a bite of the pocky he had with himself a young boy would walk right in front of him, clearly scared for his life. Itachi recognized the boy as Naruto the jinchiruuki of the kyuubi, yeah that's right Itachi respected the kid, it's not every day you hold a demon in yourself. Approaching the kid quietly he placed his hand on his shoulder.

* * *

Slowly turning around Naruto was ready to scream when he saw an Uchiha there but then he gazed into the man's eyes and he saw no malcontent or evil so he relaxed.

"Sorry sir," Naruto was whispering again, "I'll leave right away."

"Now why would you leave this perfectly good hiding spot Naruto-kun? Have some pocky, Hokage-sama has informed me you like it from time to time."

Naruto eyed the man wearily, "I do like pocky, but why would you a great shinobi from this clan want to help a demon like me. If you're anything like the villagers it would be better if I just left."

Itachi's eyes were narrowing the whole time until he couldn't take it anymore "First this clan has nothing to do with how I make my decisions and if you ever insinuate that my actions always need to be sanctioned I'll call that bastard of a father I have, and let him deal with you," Naruto physically shivered at that, "and second I will be damned if I hear the savior of this village calling himself a demon again."

Confused and a little put off with the whole 'being told the clan head,' Naruto gave the only response a 4 year old Uzumaki could muster, "Huh."

"Naruto-kun don't you find it weird that the villagers always attack you, especially today on your birthday."

"Not really sir," Naruto said while putting on his fake smile, "I just figured they were angry when I asked them if it really cost fifty ryo for a piece of last week's bread. They must be going through some rough times so I don't blame them."

Itachi was appalled after he heard that, he was going to have to talk to the Hokage about the treatment Naruto was receiving. But there was something Itachi needed to address now, this kid was so much like himself on a mission it was unbelievable, he was quiet, calm, and held his emotions in check. He would probably be a prodigy if given the right training.

"Naruto-kun answer me this, I know you are not lying but why would you hide your emotions by putting on that fake smile of yours. While a shinobi is required to be able to keep their emotions in check, you are not, so can you please explain to me why you feel that you need to lie."

Itachi saw Naruto flinch a little after being called out, but he did not expect to see a lone tear trail down the young blondes face.

"... Sir can we just keep this between us, jiisan doesn't know about this," seeing Itachi nod Naruto continued, "I used to love this village, but over the past year the hate I receive has increased, the glares have turned to beatings and the whispers have escalated to shouting at my face. I don't even know why. Jiisan just takes me to his house for a few days and lets me play at the mansion. But now hate this village, I wanted to protect it at one point but now I wouldn't care if it burned to the ground. The only people I would ever fight for are those precious to me, but since I'm hated, that's only jiisan and maybe you... I wanted to become a shinobi but now I don't care. I have seen the way ninja look at me; I'm doing everyone a favor."

Itachi was officially pissed the fu-, off. He was going to help this boy out if it killed him, literally with what he was planning to do.

"Naruto-kun let's go have a talk with the Hokage, you remind me of myself."

And with that Naruto and the man whose name he still didn't know left for the Hokage tower via a **_shunshin. _**

* * *

Sarutobi Hiruzen was an aging man who had been through a war, demon vessels raging and training possibly the three most recognized individuals in the elemental nations, the sannin. Yet every day the man could not grasp what ever possessed him to become Hokage, he had to face the biggest threat to a man's sanity everyday...

Mountains of Paperwork

Sighing to himself Sarutobi lit his pipe, he had a feeling his mountain of paperwork was about to get a lot bigger.

He didn't even know how right he was.

Feeling Itachi's presence getting closer he noticed that he was accompanied by a much smaller one.

_"Now who could that be?"_ Sarutobi was cut from his musing when Itachi arrived via his crows holding on to a slightly dumbstruck... Naruto?

"Itachi-san good to see you, may I ask you why you have my grandson with you?"

Now Itachi was never one to shy down but he was slowly starting to lose confidence. The question was asked with no malevolent intent but it's not every day when you commit an act of treason and try to tell an S-classed secret.

"Hokage-sama with all due respect I came here with Naruto to make a request," when Sarutobi's eyes prodded Itachi to continue he did, "tell Naruto, our savior, about IT or I will. I am sick of seeing him take the brunt of the idiot villagers' torture"

Sarutobi's visage turned into a scowl and Naruto for his part could not understand what the now identified Itachi said that would invoke his jiisan's face to change.

"Itachi you will speak no more of this, Naruto is 4, we don't know how the 'situation' would affect him."

"Hokage-sama, Naruto is a bright young boy who has potential to be better than myself, withholding information of his ancestry and true abilities limit him severely. You say that the laws were made to protect him but all they do is place him in a false world. Hokage-sama either you tell Naruto the whole truth now and see if he overloads or you allow me to take him in as an... Apprentice you could say, that would allow me to train him to become a shinobi and slowly tell Naruto-kun his heritage."

Sarutobi wasn't regarded as one of the smartest shinobi for nothing so he immediately noticed some loop holes, while he wasn't excited about this proposal he did not want to lose one of his best shinobi and his grandson. "Itachi while I agree with easing the truth to Naruto there are some problems with your plan. First how could you possibly take him in, need I remind you, your father does not share your thoughts about Naruto. Second do you really think that the brat will live up to your expectations?"

Sarutobi figured he could handle the council and the Uchiha clan but he wanted Naruto's opinion, if the kid did not want help, Sarutobi would stop at nothing to make sure he didn't get help. The brat comment was to get Naruto talking.

Meanwhile in La-la land Naruto was wondering if he could become a shinobi. He saw the way Itachi moved quickly with his crows and was instantly hooked. Listening to parts of the conversation Naruto was hearing his name and words like apprentice, when all of a sudden he heard his jiisan call him a brat.

"Jiisan don't call me that. Itachi-san I would love to be trained by you, I'm going to be a feared shinobi one day."

_"Wait what? I thought I wanted to be Hokage, when did that change."_

From the back of his mind Naruto heard a dripping sound, slowly a voice called out to him...

**"Embrace your desires kit; we will converse when you grow strong. The first step is to set your resolve."**

Filing that creepy quip for later Naruto caught the tail end of the conversation.

"... Alright Itachi I will give you a chance to train Naruto. You will care for him until his graduating year at the academy. You can instruct him on his heritage however you see fit, but I warn you now that if Naruto comes back distraught I will strip you down to a chunin forever. Also I do not want Naruto to be isolated from others, even if he only interacts with your jonin associates he needs to meet others."

"Thank you Hokage-sama."

With that the duo that would rock the elemental nations in the future set out to the Uchiha complex.

* * *

Wanting to instruct Naruto on some of the problems that might arise with him staying at the estate Itachi told Naruto they were going to walk home. Much to the younger blondes' dismay, something about superfast travel with crows. After a couple of minutes of walking the pair stopped at a park.

"Alright Naruto as you know you will now be living with me because of our training agreement. First at the complex the only person you have to worry about is father," the word dripped with venom "Second I will tell you about your heritage when I want, if you pester me I will stop training you. Third we will pack up all your valuables shortly, no need for clothes because we are buying you new items. Fourth every day after training you will accompany me and we will meet some of my friends and eat pocky, OK."

Naruto thought about it for a bit then looked up to Itachi with a foxy smile that he would come to hate in the future, "Under two conditions," Itachi raised an eyebrow at that, "One sometimes we have to eat ramen and two when you are not teaching me sensei I can call you Oniisan."

"Sounds good to me Otouto. Let's go get your old and new stuff."

* * *

After a long, scratch that, very long long day Itachi arrived home with a smiling Naruto. The kid had no possessions what so ever, so Itachi naturally bitched out the lady at the orphanage and bought Naruto all new clothes. Naruto's new style consisted of this: A straight navy blue t-shirt, black shorts which ended just below the knee, black shinobi sandals, and a white cloak with flame decal on the bottom - which Naruto was carrying because he was hot. Itachi admitted it made Naruto presentable and with any luck his family members would fu-, mind their own business.

Of course though Itachi had the worst luck possible, just as he was thinking where Naruto was going to stay, his Father, Mother and younger brother Sasuke turned the corner, stopped, gave him a once over and thought, "Who the hell is that."

Recovering quickly from his stupor Fugaku Uchiha, Itachi's father asked, "Son why did you bring this de-, brat to our quarters at the estate, and why are you carrying all the boxes for him, I'm sure the Beas-, kid could handle it."

Before Itachi could even think of a response his other family members put in their thoughts as well.

"Awwww, look how cute you are, Fugaku when we have a guest you treat him as one," Mikoto reprimanded "Let's get little Naru-kun some food."

Aforementioned kid blushed.

"Niisan why did you bring this kid to our home, and where were you today I thought we could train?" Sasuke asked a little downtrodden.

Once again before Itachi could answer a certain blonde knuckle head answered for him, and not in a way that would make his life any easier.

"Owww wow Oniisan, you have such a cool family. Your mommy is very pretty and nice, your father is like jiisan I know he loves you, and you have a little brother. Could he train with me during the apprentice time thing? Oh and can he be my brother too, I would call him Otouto though because I'm older, I think. And I want to call Mikoto-san Mommy too, I don't have one and I would like to have one. Is that OK," turning around after his speech Naruto saw a very pale faced Itachi, "Oi, Oniisan are you all right."

Silence.

Not a word was spoken for a minute and a half before Fugaku decided he had enough. "Itachi you have a lot of explaining to do." It was not even given option to be negotiated. Fugaku just turned and went to the dining room, everyone followed soon after.

* * *

Thus began the most uncomfortable dinner the Uchiha family has ever encountered. About half way through the meal Mikoto sent her eldest son a sympathizing glance and said, "Itachi can you please tell us the whole story. I can see you already finalized the details, much to your father's ire, so can you please just inform us on what is going to happen."

"Thank you kaasan. In short Naruto-kun was chased around today because of 'IT', he then blamed himself because of 'IT', then had enough will to put on a fake smile and take it in stride. I see a very rough exterior but on the inside he reminds me of myself. After that we went to the Hokage and I told him; either he tells Naruto about 'IT' or I take him as an apprentice. The stipulations set are I will be his caretaker until he graduates from the academy and over the course of that time period I will tell him about 'IT' while training him in the arts of the shinobi."

Mikoto's eyes almost popped out of her skull. How could her son be so brash? She knew he despised the way the villagers treated Naruto but this, this was unreal.

Sasuke on the other hand could not for the life of him figure out why Itachi Oniisan was being so nice to this orphan. He was thinking it was pity or the sorts, but when Itachi said Naruto reminded him of himself, he felt... Jealous. But when Sasuke heard that the kid was going to be his Oniisan's apprentice he lost it, "Oniisan how can you train this kid over me, I am your Otouto not him, why do you always do this," Sasuke was now whispering, "why... why-,"

"Itachi-nii, this doesn't seem like it's going to work out. I will go get my stuff and leave. Sasuke Otouto it was nice meeting you I hope you grow strong. Mikoto-sama, Fugaku-sama thank you for the meal, an orphan like me doesn't deserve this." With that a depressed Naruto left. He was so let down he left without putting on his fake smile

Before anyone could say anything, Itachi exploded; damn it all he wasn't going to be interrupted anymore, "OK, WHAT THE HELL. I tell you guys' one thing and you all immediately shut it down. Otousan you disliked the idea the second you saw him, Kaasan there is still some distrust in your eyes, and Sasuke ohhhhh Sasuke. You were probably fine with getting a brother until you thought he was stealing me away from you. Maybe that's why I like him so much, he is clearly polite and even knows a shinobi creed even though he is an orphan. You should be ashamed of yourself; maybe if what I taught you actually stuck I wouldn't be pissed right now. The needs of many outweigh the needs of one. Remember that brat and in the future be respectful to your brother and my Otouto."

And with that the Uchiha family was left at the table as Itachi went to find Naruto.

* * *

Just outside the compound.

"Naruto-kun wait, wait!" Itachi was frantically trying to get the blonde to stop. What he didn't expect was for the kid to whirl on him and stare at him with eyes full of tears.

"Why should I wait, I was right Oniisan your family hates me like everyone else. I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY!" Naruto was screaming, "Why should I stay in a village that hates me, also I think I'm going crazy because I hear a voice in my head, it keeps telling me to embrace something. So you know what, I will just leave and figure it out on my own. I don't want to cause anyone more pain then they need and I seem to make everyone hate. Good b-,"

Just as Naruto was about leave he felt someone poke his forehead and pull him into a hug.

"Silly Otouto, you don't make people hate it's their own stupidity. Plus if you left the village your jiisan would be very sad and I would miss you too, you are my little blonde Otouto and don't you ever forget. I know kaasan will love you eventually the other two worry me..." pausing Itachi backed off a little so he could see Naruto's eyes. "Tell you what, if you don't want to deal with them I will move out with you and we can get a nice apartment."

Sniff-"thanks Itachi-nii but let's just stay at your house. It will take a while but we could probably get along. If it ever gets rough I can stay at a guest house at the outskirts of the property."

"OK Otouto let's get you to bed, tomorrow is going to be even worse than today."

With that Itachi led Naruto back to the estate and straight to his room. He did not trust anyone in the household at the moment and he wasn't going to chance it.

"Goodnight Itachi-nii."

"Goodnight Naruto-kun."

* * *

MINDSCAPE

**"The kit is growing. He seeks out his power for the sake of nothing ... yet, the bond is growing stronger. I will not reveal myself until he proves his resolve is strong enough to contain the emotions; anger, desire, hate. He will learn in time what a true shinobi is and only then will the world be ready. For being loyal is nice but the elemental nations will soon find out the embodiment death, for he who bears the sins of many shall restore the peace to the corrupted world. May he be known as the Crimson Fracture that tore this world asunder."**

* * *

Another A:N/ So what did you think of the first chapter. This story will be drawn out so no need to rush anything. I promise to warn you for time skips at the beginning of the chapters. I know that you're all thinking WTF, why is Itachi being so nice to Naruto, and the hell the kyuubi is a scholar. Well that will be explained, later. I am game for writing a cute pairing between almost anyone, just don't expect lemons. I'll put a contest up and see. Also should the kyuubi be a woman, yes or no. As good as some stories are there will be no relationship there, but I might give Naruto some more foxy attributes. It just makes him so damn cute. Please don't flame me if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	2. Chapter 2 - Friends, Family and Training

Crimson Fracture

**Bold – **Kyuubi talking

**Bold and Underline **– Kyuubi thinking

_Italics _– Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics _**– Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 2 - Friends, Family and Training

A few days later...

"Good morning kaasan!"

"Morning kaasan,"

"Good morning Naru-kun, musuko. You're up awfully early, are you starting your training today?" When Mikoto got two nods for her response she continued, "Well then I wish you the best of luck Naru-kun."

Itachi for his part was silently thinking the same thing; he did not plan to take it easy on the kid. He was also glad that his family accepted Naruto a bit more over the past few days. Some of the other households had mixed feelings as well, but when Mikoto 'talked' to them they suddenly had a change of heart. Itachi would never forget what his kaasan did for Naruto the day after he arrived.

Flashback

Swish~~

"Up you go Naru-kun; I've got a big day planned for you."

"Uhhh," groaned Naruto. He couldn't remember the last time he got a full night's sleep. Rubbing the tiredness from his eyes Naruto realised who was in front of him and saw that she was waiting for a response. "Sorry about that. What are we doing today Mikoto-sa-"

"Naru-kun, please call me kaasan. No arguing about it either. I heard what you said yesterday, if anything I should apologise to you for not talking to you more. But that is why I planned today out so get ready. Come down to the kitchen as soon as you can."

With that Mikoto left to finish the special breakfast she was making Naruto, who she now considered one of her own.

_"Kushina would probably come back from the afterlife to yell at me if I didn't,"_ Mikoto thought,_ "hopefully I don't let anything slip before Itachi tells him."_

"Thank you kaasan."

Turning, Naruto saw Itachi smiling at him, so he got ready as quick as possible and continued to race straight down to the kitchen. When he got there he almost screamed out in joy, oh wait he did.

"RAMEN!"

* * *

After breakfast Itachi had to go and get paper work filled out. They were the forms that would ensure Naruto's apprenticeship was final. So that left Naruto at home, with Mikoto and Sasuke. Just when he was about to ask Sasuke to play tag, or go and prank someone, Sasuke got up and left. Mikoto seeing her children barely interacting decided it was time for phase two of "Operation Uzumaki Acquaintances."

Tapping the blonde on the shoulder, "Naru-kun would you like to go meet the other clans with me. We could go see their children and maybe you could make new friends."

She had him sold as soon as he heard friends

"Let's go kaasan. Let's go," Naruto was overflowing with joy, but he stopped suddenly. Looking up into Mikoto's eyes Naruto continued, "Kaasan, I don't have any friends. Can you please help me? The only reason I can talk with you is because of jiisan."

"Don't worry Naruto, I'll help you. Let's go."

* * *

Hyuga Household

"Good afternoon Mikoto-san why might you be here?" Hiashi questioned not remembering if there was a meeting between clans.

"As much as I appreciate the welcome Hiashi-san, if you do not acknowledge everyone with me I won't answer your question."

This puzzled Hiashi, what did Mikoto mean acknowledge every one with her? Fugaku wasn't here so who was she talking about? Hiashi then felt something pulling at the bottom of his robes. Looking down he saw his daughter Hinata pointing behind Mikoto and that was when he saw it, a blonde haired, blue eyed kid was looking up at him with fear written all over his face. While Hiashi wasn't fond of the boy he knew when to be civil. Returning his gaze to Mikoto he said, "My apologies Mikoto-san I didn't see Uzumaki-san there. Please come in so we can talk. Naruto can play with Hinata just outside."

Happy with the answer Mikoto went to move, but found she couldn't because Naruto was holding her arm like it was his last lifeline. Bending down Mikoto got eye to eye with Naruto and decided to help him out a little. Turning towards the Hyuga's Mikoto started with, "Hinata-chan this is my son, Naru Uzumaki. I hope you two can become friends." Quickly planting a kiss to the cheek that made both kids blush she ushered them off to go play. Hiashi merely raised an eyebrow and decided this was going to be a very interesting visit.

Naruto and Hinata quickly ran off and ended up next to a pond. Deciding to talk before he ran out of courage Naruto turned to Hinata and said, "So Hinata-chan what do you want to play?"

Blushing slightly at the endearment Hinata stuttered out, "hh-ow about we-we just talk Naru-kun. I-I want to know who-who you are... I mean! How are you related to Mi-Mikoto-sama?"

"OK… First my name is Naruto Uzumaki but kaasan says my full name is now Naruto Uzumaki Uchiha. But Hinata-chan you can call me Naru-kun like kaasan because it's cute to hear you say it. Second, yesterday I was taken as an apprentice but I think kaasan will have me legally adopted before I go to the ninja academy. I'm going to be a ninja some day."

"Ohhh, OK"

It seemed Naruto would have to get her talking.

"Hinata-chan how about you tell me your likes and dislikes. Then you can ask me another question."

"O-Ok Naru-kun. I l-like my family and cinnabuns. I dislike people w-who treat others wrongly for things they c-can't control... Why do you want to become a ninja, do you want to protect this village."

"No, I am becoming a ninja Hinata-chan to protect my friends and family. I could care less about a village that doesn't care about me. Hinata-chan you are my friend and we should get stronger to protect each other, because that is our way of the ninja."

Hinata was about to answer when Mikoto's voice carried across the estate, "Naru-kun we have to go now!"

Walking back up front Hinata joined her father and Naruto grabbed his kaasan's hand and walked away. When they were far enough away Hiashi turned to his daughter and asked, "what do you think of that boy, Hinata?"

His answer fell on deaf ears because today was the start of an infamous trend in Konoha, Hinata fainted.

* * *

Akimichi BBQ

Mikoto lead her son to a huge table at the back of the restaurant and ushered him to sit down right next to her.

"Kaasan, who are we meeting here?"

"Well depending on who shows up to my invitation. You could meet the: Nara, Yamanaka, Akimichi, Inuzuka, Haruno, or Aburame clans. Also we might meet a few of Itachi's acquaintances such as Mitirashi-san, or Yuhi-san, and if we're lucky Hatake-kun."

Satisfied with the answer Naruto kept quiet for several minutes. Noticing people starting to approach their table Naruto sent his kaasan a questioning glance.

Sensing the uneasiness Naruto was having, she decided to introduce the guests to Naruto as they arrived. In the end only the clan heads and their children showed up. "OK, Naru-kun," Mikoto whispered, "I'll tell you who is here from left to right. First you have the Inuzuka's, here today is Kiba, Hana, and their mother Tsume. Second you have the Yamanaka clan, here today is Ino and her father Inoichi. Next you have the Haruno, here today is Sakura and her mother Mebuki. Then you have the Aburame, here today is Shino and his father Shibi. After that you have Akimichi, here today is Choji and his father Choza."

"Kaasan I thought you said all the clans were here. The meal is about to start where is the Nara clan members."

"Naru-kun when the food gets placed on the table, listen really carefully and look towards the door. I'm sure you will see the Nara's. Shikamaru will walk in followed by his father Shikaku."

Not really understanding Naruto just waited. Soon the food was coming out and he stared at the door and concentrated very hard. To his surprise he could hear two people lazily arguing back and forth. Something about "Troublesome women interrupting their cloud watching time." Then the doors slowly opened up and two males walked in, looked around and headed to their table.

Turning to see his kaasan grinning he asked, "How did you know they were going to do that?"

"That will be answered as we are eating. Listen up Naru-kun this lunch will allow you to learn all about the major clans in Konoha." Turning to the ensemble of gathered people Mikoto announced, "Hello everyone, I would like you to meet my new son Naruto."

Mikoto was expecting herself to have to explain, a lot. But to her surprise everyone just looked at the kid and gave him a hello, ranging from a nod of the head to a gentle wave.

_"Looks like Hokage-sama has already talked to the council. That helps out a little bit."_

"OK everyone dig in. Kids when you are done eating you can go outside and play a little bit. Hana-chan you just have to stay with the parents for a little after the meal."

Everyone broke their chopsticks apart and were about to silently whisper itadakimasu when the Akimichi suddenly yelled it for them, "ITADAKIMASU!"

After the meal the kids went outside to play. Naruto felt a bit out of place. Shikamaru was staring up at the clouds with Choji lying beside him because he ate too much. Ino and Sakura were near a patch of flowers, seemingly inspecting them. Kiba and Shino were having a quiet conversation under a tree while their partners were lying or buzzing around them. So Naruto was sitting quietly under a tree wondering what they all thought of him.

_"….." _– Shino

_"I wonder why he has blonde hair, also if he is Mikoto-sama's son why haven't I seen him before. What did she mean by new? Also he is a lot quieter than Sasuke-san… Troublesome."_- Shikamaru

_"His whisker marks make him look so cute." _– Ino and Sakura

_"I wonder if he liked my family's food, he sure eats a lot for being so small." _– Choji

_"I should challenge him to a race, prove I'm the alpha dog here." _– Kiba

But time was not on Naruto's side this time. Just when he was about to ask the other children to play a game Hana came outside and told Naruto it was time to go. Naruto was a little sad at this but as he was going away Ino and Sakura came up to him and said, "Naruto-kun please come back next week so we can become friends."

"Ok Ino-chan, Sakura-chan."

With that Naruto left while holding his kaasan's hand. Soon after the clan heads rounded up their children and left. They all had one thing on their mind and it was what Mikoto said to them while the children were outside. _"If you spread any lies or rumors on my Naru-kun that causes him to lose any of his friends I will personally torture you. The Uchiha police force has enough on any of your clans for the Hokage to severely punish you. Also do I need to remind you who the kid's parents were. I'm sure his mother would come back from the shinigami just to scream at you if you even thought of hurting him."_

End Flashback

Itachi smiled a little thinking what the clan heads must have been thinking on their way home. Turning to Naruto he smiled an oh so evil smile and said, "Time to start your training otouto."

"Hai sensei!"

* * *

Uchiha Training Ground

"So sensei what are you going to teach me?" Naruto asked energetically.

"Meditation."

When Itachi didn't continue Naruto was puzzled. Why would he have to sit with his legs crossed? Not wanting to anger his sensei Naruto tried to hide his disappointment and said, "Oh, OK."

"Naruto everyone has what we shinobi call chakra. Chakra is the base power for all shinobi techniques, with the exception of taijutsu. But in order to efficiently use chakra one needs to be able to control it. However we will continue your meditation until you have enough control to perform a certain technique that will make your training speed skyrocket. When you master this type of meditation you will have a mid genin level of control. Naruto if you beat my record of completing this training in 1 week I will introduce you to one of my friends. I think you will like her…. Personality. She likes dango like you. OK. Now sit on the ground and cross your legs one over the other. Put your hands in the tiger hand seal and close your eyes. For now try to concentrate on moving chakra to your hands."

Following his sensei's instructions Naruto began to meditate.

* * *

Mindscape

**"The kit takes his first few steps into the light, or maybe the darkness. It is far too early for him to know about me. His resolve has strengthened from the last time I whispered to him. Let's see if he can pass the test of dread."**

Naruto had currently been sitting still for 5 minutes and still he felt nothing. Suddenly he felt cold and could hear a scratching noise from the back of his head. Getting a little nervous Naruto tried to open his eyes, only to find out he couldn't. Frantically trying to open his eyes Naruto heard a faint spell of laughter. Listening in on the voice he found that it was talking to him.

**"Why do you fight…"**

When it seemed like the voice was waiting for an answer he thought out, _"I fight for my family and friends. My precious people."_

**"What if they died, right in front of you…"**

Suddenly pictures started to flood into Naruto's mind; Hinata had a kunai lodged into her eye with blood splattered on the wall behind her. Sarutobi had 3rd degree burns everywhere and a fist sized hole where a person's heart should be. Ino and Sakura had limbs blown off with multiple stab wounds. Itachi had his arms bent backwards with the bones protruding from the elbows, and Mikoto had a kunai lodged in one of her eyes with the sharingnan active in the other. She was hanging from a tree. Before Naruto could even think of crying all his friends were reduced to ashes by a **_Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu_**.

This officially broke Naruto. Unable to think properly Naruto subconsciously called forth half a tail worth of kyuubi chakra.

* * *

Outside

Itachi was having a nice day, he could practice his kunai throwing without Sasuke annoying him and he could take a brake and eat dango whenever he wanted. Getting ready to start training again Itachi was hit with the most evil intent since the kyuubi… Naruto! Rushing over to his apprentice he could see small traces of red chakra swirling around the blonde. Itachi could only imagine what the Hokage would do to him if Naruto went like this.

_"Damn Kyuubi, I might have to speed his training up." _Reaching out Itachi grabbed his apprentices should and started shaking him. _"Damn it I have to get him awake. If the Hokage gets here he will be forced to strengthen Naruto's seal and that will weaken him severely." _

Meanwhile….

* * *

Mindscape

_"I will kill all the bastards that did that. No I will rip their limbs off and let them bleed to death in front of their own families. Trash like them do not deserve to die a warrior's death."_

**_"This isn't good. I wanted him to honor their deaths not seek revenge."_**

**"Even if you kill them all, what do you do after…."**

The swirling tempest of hate slowed down. What would he do after his friends died? His friends gave him his purpose. Would honoring their deaths be what they truly wanted or was revenge the only certain way to prove their existence? Wait, if I killed wanting to rectify their existence wouldn't that be spitting on their graves saying they didn't do enough when they were alive. Hardening his resolve Naruto thought out, _"I would do nothing after because I wouldn't kill them in the first place, even if the bastards deserved it."_

**_"Why wouldn't you kill them…"_**

_"Because my friends wouldn't want that. We chose to become shinobi and our way of the ninja is to grow stronger and to protect one another. If I were to blindly kill those responsible I would be dishonoring my friends and myself."_

**_"You have passed this test, but the next one starts right now. Tell anyone of this encounter and you fail. Shinobi have secrets and you will have your own. When you awake should anyone ask you don't remember anything. Got it?"_**

_"OK…"_

**_"Tomorrow try using this hand seal during your meditation,"_**

****With that a picture of the **_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_**'sonly hand sign popped into Naruto's head and sent him outside of his mindscape.

* * *

Outside

Itachi was currently being glared at by the Hokage. He was waiting for Naruto to wake up and hopefully save his ass. The Hokage said that if Naruto had met the kyuubi he would be doing D ranked missions every week until Naruto graduated. If you thought that was bad his punishment was actually downgraded after the kyuubi's chakra faded on its own. At first he was going to be the Hokage's paper work head. A new position that involved doing all of Konoha's paper work until Sarutobi retired. Hearing Naruto stir they saw him get up and look around confused. Fearing the worst Sarutobi looked at Itachi and prodded him to speak.

"Naruto your chakra was going crazy there for a little bit, do you remember what happened."

Thinking back to the events that just transpired Naruto remembered a key bit of info,_"Shinobi have secrets and you will have your own. When you awake should anyone ask you don't remember anything. Got it?"_

"No I don't remember anything Itachi-sensei, jiisan," standing up Naruto replied wearily "Can we talk more tomorrow I feel very slee-." Naruto passed out from chakra exhaustion. As he was falling Itachi caught him. Slowly putting him on the ground Itachi turned to the Hokage.

"Little knucklehead passed out from chakra exhaustion. I'll go put him to bed. He will probably be out for a few days, too bad too because I told him if he beat my genin meditation record I would introduce him to someone interesting."

"You're lucky Itachi, if Naruto had any idea what just happened I would go through with that threat I said earlier." Turning around Sarutobi started to walk away. Calling over his shoulder he said, "If anything happens to my grandson Itachi I will persecute you as a family member not your superior. Remember that."

_"This kid is going to cause me so much trouble."_

Itachi lifted Naruto on to his shoulder and brought the kid in to his room. He laid him down and let him sleep. Itachi figured the kid would be out for two days then be bed ridden for one more.

Itachi didn't know how wrong he was…

* * *

Next Day

"Naruto what do you mean you want to train today? How are you even standing?"

"Sensei what do you mean why do I want to train? I'm going to get stronger silly. And I am standing because I woke up and didn't want to lie down, duh. Meet me outside I have something to show you."

_"Whatever it is I will have to tell the Hokage about Naruto recovering so quick. He probably wants to show me he can do the meditation without being instructed on it every day."_ With that in mind Itachi went to find the blonde. When he did find Naruto, being surprised was an understatement. Here on his second day of meditating Naruto was sitting straight up with a posture some chunin didn't have. But that was the least of his worries, because he could see a very, very faint outline of blue chakra surrounding the boy and instead of a tiger hand seal he had the… Wait how the hell did Naruto learn the **_Kage Bunshin _**hand seal.

_"This is going to be a very stressful week." _

What Itachi didn't know was this was going to be a very stressful life.

* * *

**Jutsu:**

**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu: **Shadow Clone

**Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu: **Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique

A/N: So what did you think of this chapter? So far my chapters are about 3600 words average. Do you want longer chapters or do you think that is enough? I stated that I would follow cannon but it's just too much damn fun to deviate from the story. I have a pairing poll up for my story. I will probably give Naruto some foxy changes but the kyuubi's gender will be a mystery. I am not 100 % sure right now either but let's see how the story progresses. Please don't flame me if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	3. Chapter 3 - Snakes, Pranks and Training

Crimson Fracture

**Bold** – Kyuubi talking

**Bold and Underline** – Kyuubi thinking

_Italics_ – Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics_** – Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 3 - Snakes, Pranks and Training

A few days later...

Itachi was amazed. Only six days after he started the meditation training with Naruto the blonde had mastered it. When Naruto had gotten comfortable with the exercise on the second day, Itachi moved Naruto on to a rock in the middle of the man made stream at the complex. This would force Naruto to become one with his surroundings. A key skill that acts as a building block for stealth. With the higher level of concentration in place more chakra would be subconsciously released. And that was why Naruto currently had a 1/2 inch ring of chakra surrounding his body. Itachi had to activate his sharingnan and sharpen his vision with chakra to see it, but Naruto was a kid after all. He had been maintaining it for about 5 minutes too.

"Alright Naruto-kun that is enough, I have something to tell you."

Stopping the exercise Naruto's eyes snapped open. Adjusting to the bright sun rays Naruto had to blink a couple of times to get his vision back. When he could finally see again, he spotted Itachi standing near the porch. Stepping off the rock and in to the stream, Naruto waded through the crystal clear water. When Naruto reached his niisan he couldn't wait to hear the news.

"Sensei are you going to teach me something new?"

"Naruto do you not remember the bet we made before you began your training. If you forgot there is no point in going and that would probably save me some money too."

Naruto was tempted to hit himself in the face. "Since I beat your meditation record does that mean we get to eat dango and meet your friend?"

"You are correct Naruto-kun. Since I'm going to be spending money on you how about we make another bet?" Seeing Naruto smile he continued, "I bet you can't eat more dango than the person we are about to meet. If by some stroke of luck you beat her I will tell you your training schedule for the next few years when we get back to the estate. When you lose though, you will have to be Sasuke's little helper all day on the weekend. Let's hurry up because she does not like to be kept waiting."

Nodding his approval Naruto started walking to the dango shop. All the way there Naruto was watching Itachi and be couldn't help but feel like he was nervous. Why would Itachi be nervous about meeting a friend? Surely she must be very nice...

* * *

Dango Shop

Stepping in to the shop Itachi quickly found who he was looking for and went over to her.

"Hey Anko-san this is..."

Tang!

Naruto was officially lost. Itachi was in the middle of introducing himself when the woman attacked him. Naruto couldn't follow their actions with his eyes, but his niisan and the woman named Anko were currently in a blade lock with kunai.

"Don't hey me Itachi and who's the gaki over there. He's just so damn cute I want to cut him up."

"As I was going to say Anko, that is Naruto. He is my otouto and student. Please introduce yourself again, try not to scare him and let him talk to you. If you let him talk I feel that you may like him more than a pincushion."

"Uhh fine. Kid my name is Anko Mitarashi. I am one of your niisans associates. I like snakes, torturing bastards, killing bastards, dango, and pranking village idiots. I dislike humans who represent snakes, my old sensei, his eyes, his voice, his... Fuck. I just really hate a certain man. Oh and sometimes I swear, what about you shithead?"

"I... Uhhhh," Naruto was whispering.

"Speak up kid or I'm going to jam a kunai up you're…"

"Anko," Itachi yelled. "I understand you speak your mind but I will not have you scare away Naruto or any other guests in this store. He is shy and you know that Anko. Naruto just joined our family and barely has any friends. Let him speak before you judge him. Continue Naruto."

"Thank you sensei. It is nice to meet you Anko-san. I am an orphan who was recently taken in by the Uchiha. I like Ramen, dango, pocky, pranks, friends and my family. I dislike people who judge others for things they can't control and people who use others for their own sake. I would also like to challenge you to a dango eating contest."

"My god Itachi you got yourself a little robot, he is way too polite. Kid I must have heard you wrong, you said you like pranks and you challenged me to a dango eating contest, you got a death wish or something. You look smart but you're stupider than Sasuke."

There are many things in this world that Naruto could handle. Torture, extreme training, the possibility of ramen running out, but one thing you must never do and Itachi learned this the hard way, is to compare Naruto to anyone and call him stupid. _"Ohh boy, Anko you had to say that didn't you."_ Itachi could see Naruto clenching his fists and wondered how badly he was going to snap.

"Do I look stupid to you? You freaking snake. Also did I stutter earlier, because I'm pretty sure I challenged you to a dango eating contest," Naruto yelled looking straight into Anko's eyes. Getting ready to leave Naruto muttered to himself, "Stupid bitch."

Too bad Anko heard him, _"Little bastard has some back bone. I like it."_

"You got some balls gaki. You're on for the dango eating. Tell yeah what, you win and I'll take you on a real prank."

"You're going down snake lady."

1 hour later…

4 empty plates, 12 bare skewers, 48 balls of dango eaten. Anko was leaning on the table muttering sweet nothings about stupid bottomless pit blondes, eating all the dango. Naruto for his part hadn't felt this full in a long time. He was leaning back in his chair with a small smile on his face. He just won two bets after all.

_"How the hell did Naruto out eat Anko. Not only do I owe him his full training schedule but he also gets to go on a 'real' prank with Anko. Please god, if you're out there, do not let Anko corrupt my otouto in one visit."_ Itachi was cut from his thoughts when he noticed Anko getting ready to leave.

"Tell the kid to meet me outside this place at midnight. He seems to be enjoying his nap."

_"His nap?" _That was when Itachi noticed Naruto drooling on the table. Not wanting to clean the mess Itachi picked Naruto up and **_Shunshin_**ed back to the estate.

* * *

Uchiha Estate – Training Ground

Arriving via his crows Itachi noticed Naruto was awake so he threw him on to the ground.

"Owww, what was th…"

"Naruto I have lost two bets to you and I am not really happy about it. As per the bets rules I will tell you your whole training schedule for the next few years. Also meet Anko at the dango stand at midnight for the prank. Alright this is going to be a little long so I suggest we get comfortable," Itachi went over to one of the big trees on the estate and sat under the shade. Naruto soon followed because this was his future that Itachi was going to be talking about. "Ok Naruto I have planned out your training schedule in increments of one or two years. I will do a quick overview and then I will explain each section in detail. Are you ready?"

"Yes sensei, please begin."

"Alright Naruto the first part of your training we have already begun. You will be learning to master the **_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_**. That will allow you to train incredibly fast. **_Kage Bunshin_** are not normal clones because when they are dispelled all the knowledge they learned will be transferred to the original. After that you will train your taijutsu for one year. Then you will take one year to study the history of Konoha along with the subjects you will be learning at the academy. Next per Hokage-sama's request you will spend your starting year in the academy with all of your friends. After you completed that you will accompany me on a two year training trip outside of the village. The year after that you will spend one year on ninjutsu. After that you will spend one year being taught kenjutsu or fuinjutsu, depending on who I can get to aide you. Then your last year will include you going back to the academy and graduating with everyone else. Do you have any questions or can I continue."

"No, please continue Itachi-sensei."

"Alright we will start with you taijutsu to build up your strength. That will allow you to handle the strenuous training better. Apart from that you will be sparring with clones of yourself every other day. This will allow you study and master various styles and help you develop your own. The year of studying is equally important because it will give you insight on all of Konoha's clans. Also I will have you learn five years worth of academy subjects, that way you won't have to worry about ignorant teachers treating you badly. If you are really good I might just let you into the Grand Uchiha Library. Your academy year will be to reconnect with friends before you leave for 4 years. The two years outside of the village are secret but trust me, when we come back you will be low chunin. By the time we get to ninjutsu I will have you learn your elemental affinity and we can go from there. Your last year before you go back to the academy will depend on the aide I find. Naruto I know this is a lot to take in right now, so I am giving you the rest of today off. Please think over what I have told you and if you have any questions please ask." With that Itachi turned and left.

_"I'm sure glad niisan gave me the rest of the day off, that is a lot to think about. Seeing as how I won't be able to see any of my friends for a while I should attend the clan diner with kaasan tonight. Then I can go with Anko-san and prank people, I wonder what her type of pranks are? No sense of worrying about that now, I should go find kaasan."_

* * *

Clan Diner – Akimichi BBQ

It had been a wonderful meal. The food was cooked to perfection and this time nobody hesitated to chow down. When the meal was over Naruto pulled all of his friends out of the restaurant and to the flower patch just outside. Stepping out in front of all of his friends Naruto couldn't help but feel a little sad. Gathered around him were a group of people who accepted him for who he was and he was about to tell them he would be gone for 2 years, come back for 1 and then be gone for another 4.

"Hey everyone," gaining their attention Naruto continued, "As you all know my niisan is also my sensei. Today he told me my training schedule. It is a bit frantic and today will be the last time you will see me..."

"WHAT!"

Looking around the group Naruto found the culprits who screamed out before he could finish. There was a teary eyed Ino and Sakura pointing at him and just behind them was Hinata. She was currently looking down at the ground, but Naruto could see her face was red indicating she was embarrassed.

"As I was saying, the last time you will see me for two years." Stopping so the information could set in he saw; Ino and Sakura's face go red from embarrassment, Shikamaru mutter something about interruptions are too troublesome to Choji, Kiba full out laughing at the two girls and Shino just stand there. Hinata had the decency to apologise. "I will come back for a year when we start the academy, but then I will have to leave for 4 more years. As long as that seems, I will be back in time for our graduation. With any luck I'll be placed on a team with some of you."

Just when the friends were about to tell Naruto "good luck," or "why do you have to leave for so long," they heard their respective parents calling them back to go, as it was getting late.

"Hinata-chan, Ino-chan, Sakura-chan can you please wait an extra second," Naruto said before running into the flower patch.

_"I wonder what he's doing," _was their collective thought.

When Naruto returned he had a big smile on his face. "OK close your eyes and put out your hands. No peaking Ino."

"Fine, spoilsport," with that all three females put out their hands. Soon after they felt a very delicate object placed into their hands.

"Ok you can open your eyes now."

When the three did they all gasped. How did Naruto know? How did he get these?

"I want you all to remember me, and hopefully with these you realise how special you are to me. Hinata-chan I gave you an Amaririsu Belladonna. It represents the side of your personality I find cute, your shyness. Ino-chan I gave you a Hinageshi because I love your free nature. You're the one who made flowers so fun and interesting. Sakura-chan I gave you a Tsutsuji because of the time you have spent, to get to know me. You have listened to my stories and you have told me yours. I hope with these flowers you three will remember me. I am proud to be your friends."

Turning to leave Naruto was stopped when he felt someone clasp his hand. Looking over his shoulder to see his friends Naruto was met by three small kisses to the cheek.

"We will never forget you Naruto-kun."

With that in mind and a huge smile on his face Naruto went over to his kaasan grabbed her hand and walked home.

* * *

Uchiha Estate – Naruto's Room 11:56 PM

_"No, no, no how could I lose track of time. Anko-san will kill me."_

These were the thoughts that accompanied Naruto later that same evening. The night was over-cast, therefore making it pitch black and perfect for pranks. Quickly putting on his prank gear, which composed of gloves, a long sleeve shirt, pants, sandals, and a mask which were all black. Naruto hopped out his window and ran straight to the dango shop.

* * *

Dango Shop – 11:59 PM

_"I'm gonna kill that bastard if he makes me wait one more minute," _hearing a noise Anko tensed. When she realised it was Naruto she mentally smirked, _"He isn't even a shinobi yet and he already posses this level of stealth. We are going to have so much fun tonight."_

Jumping down from her perch on the tree she was crouching in, Anko silently walked behind the kid and put a kunai to his neck, "Got any last words bastard," she hissed out, altering her voice slightly and putting a small amount of killer intent behind it. Expecting the kid to faint from shock she was surprised when he only tensed up a little bit. _"Either this kids been through some tough shit or Itachi is being a slave driver." _Spinning the blonde around so he could face her she said, "You got some balls kid, so are you ready?"

_"I might die tonight," _Naruto thought quickly before responding, "Yeah, so what are we doing Anko-san?"

"Kid I have some of my best pranks planned for tonight. Also just call me Anko. You have earned some of my respect and I was going to start calling you Naruto, unless you piss me off I'll call you shithead or something."

"Ok Anko what are we going to do?"

"Listen to this, Naruto…."

* * *

The Next Morning…

_"Hokage-sama? Hokage-sama! You have to get up, something, no many things are wrong. All the Ichi Ichi Paradise books have been destroyed, all of the ramen has been taken, and your face on the monument has been given a mustache."_

"Ahhhhh," Sarutobi Hiruzen awoke with a start, all around him was scattered paperwork. "Note to self too much paperwork gives horrible nightmares." Looking around he finally noticed a chunin standing in the doorway.

"Hokage-sama did you hear me? The Ichi Ichi Paradise books have been destroyed!"

"Wait, that wasn't a dream."

"No sir look at your face on the monument."

Sarutobi got out of his chair and slowly walked to the window. He was hoping, just hoping that this was some sick joke the chunin was playing. When he got to the window he could only stare, there on the mountain behind him where his faced was carved he now had a huge orange mustache.

"NARUTO!"

* * *

Hokage Tower Entrance

_"Man that was so much fun last night I hope I didn't piss jiisan off too much. I need to do that again with Anko-chan." _Beginning to walk in to the tower Naruto stopped and thought about what he, well just thought about, _"Wait, did I just say Anko-chan. She would kill me if I said that. Better be careful."_

Cutting his musing short Naruto walked straight into the building and up to the big doors that led into his jiisan's room. Kicking the door open Naruto could of swore he saw a toad but before he could distinguish it there was just, smoke? Thinking it was just jiisan smoking again he let it go.

"So jiisan, a little birdie told me you wanted to talk."

"Naruto… Why did you burn all the Ichi Ichi Paradise books? I could live with all the other things, but why did you burn away the one book I enjoy to read?"

"Oh I didn't know you read such trash jiisan. I was with Anko yesterday and she suggested we prank. When I asked her what we were going to do, she said pyro, graffiti and food. Pyro was new to me but when she told me what that book was about I just had to help. I can't believe you read such trash."

"Naruto what is done is done. Although you will have to clean the whole Hokage monument as punishment. If you argue even a little bit I will increase the punishment. Now go."

Naruto for his part just turned and left, muttering 'stupid ladies getting off without punishment.'

When Naruto was outside of the tower there was a poofing sound in the Hokage room.

"How dare that brat call my books and research trash."

"Now, now Jiraiya."

"So that's him, eh sensei. He has gotten so big I wouldn't recognise him without the whisker marks."

"Isn't that true. Now Jiraiya I assume you have not come here today to talk about Naruto. So what bad news have you come to tell me today."

"Well there have been talks amongst a certain clan in Konoha about a civil war. No need to worry though they don't plan to attack for about two or three years."

"What clan is it Jiraiya?"

"Well you see it's the…."

* * *

**Jutsu:**

**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu: **Shadow Clone

**Shunshin:** Body Flicker Technique

A/N: First things first, what did you think? I'm one evil son-of-a…. Let's not go there but how was the cliff-hanger? One giant cookie for the person who can guess which clan it is. I'm not sure if I would have to change the rating because of the language. I don't plan to write like that often but I feel that is the way Anko would talk. A side note is the flowers I gave Hinata, Ino, and Sakura actually have those meanings according to Hanakotoba, which is a Japanese form of language of flowers. You can find the page I used on Wiki. I will leave the poll up until I feel there is a clear cut winner for the pairing. There will be multiple time skips coming up but I will notify you at the beginning of the respective chapters. As always please don't flame me if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	4. Chapter 4 - Taijutsu is Hell

Crimson Fracture

**Bold** – Kyuubi talking

**Bold and Underline** – Kyuubi thinking

_Italics_ – Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics_** – Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Warning: This will be the most boring training chapter, but it needs to be done

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 4 – Taijutsu is Hell

The Next Morning…

It was currently 5 AM. Itachi had just woken up and he saw that Naruto was still out like a light. Looking over at his blonde brother he couldn't help to smirk. How this little charismatic kid got people to listen to him he would never know. Seeing Naruto hanging off the edge of the bed Itachi got a horrible idea. Walking over the sleeping figure he leaned over him until he was centimeters away from his ears. Cupping his hands together to make a microphone he gave Naruto his worst wakeup call ever.

"GOOD MORNING NARUTO-KUN!"

Crash!

Naruto ended up flat on his head. Sitting up to face Itachi, Naruto started rubbing his head. When the stars finally receded he started, "Itachi-nii what the hell was that for? I think you cracked my head a bit."

"Oh don't be such a baby and call me sensei, we are starting your taijutsu year today. Now get up and meet me in the kitchen so I can explain what we will be doing for the next year. I have already packed all the stuff you will need in a storage scroll." With that Itachi turned and left. When his back was facing Naruto a huge smile crept on to his face. _"Haha did you see his face when he got up. I will have to do that more often. I'll say it is to train his senses, because a ninja needs to be aware all the time."_

A Few Minutes Later in the Kitchen….

"So sensei what will we be doing for the next year? Why did you pack my stuff into a scroll? Aren't we going to be training here?"

"Naruto we will not be training at the estate, there are too many people around for me to give my full attention to you that is my mission after all. Also we will be staying at the place I take you to because it has several training aides that we don't have here at home. Before I tell you about your schedule there is something I have to show you. It will open your eyes to a lot of things, especially hard work. Now let's go they should only be on their second lap right now."

_"Second lap? I wonder who we are going to meet."_

* * *

Just Outside Konoha

"Sensei I thought we were going to meet somebody why are we all the way out here?"

"Naruto look over there," Itachi pointed slightly to the west. "What do you see?"

Squinting really hard Naruto could see two green blobs jogging at a sedate pace towards them. But that wasn't what caught Naruto's attention; one of the individuals was jogging with his… hands. "Who is that sensei?"

"That is Maito Gai and Rock Lee his… apprentice. We will have a little talk with them. I want you to see what your training schedule will be like when you are as old as Gai. Look here they are now."

Turning so he could face them Naruto saw two pairs of the biggest eyebrows he had ever seen.

"Itachi-san it is good to see you and your apprentice. Your flames of youth are burning brightly this morning."

"Good to see you too Maito-san. I was about to start Naruto's taijutsu training and I thought it would be beneficial for him to hear what your training is like. It's not every day a taijutsu master has time to spare."

"Yosh, Naruto-kun your flames of youth will burn as bright as ever if you follow my training schedule. First I do twenty warm up laps around Konoha on my hands. Then I do 1000 kicks and punches to wooden posts. After that I do sit-ups until I get too hungry to continue. Taking a break for lunch I eat high protein foods so I can continue to train past dinner. After that I do another twenty laps around Konoha but this time I run. After that I repeat the kicks and punches, if I finish early I spend some time finishing the taijutsu style I created."

Naruto was dumbstruck, he imagined extreme training but this was on a whole different level.

"Gai I think you broke my apprentice. In a few months time I will set up a little spar between Naruto and Lee. Until then continue to work hard."

Grabbing Naruto by his collar, Itachi dragged the blonde all the way to training ground 19.

* * *

Training Ground 19

Setting Naruto down Itachi got ready to explain the blondes training. _"Is this all I ever do now a days." _"All right Naruto I will explain to you what your training schedule will be like, but before that can you tell me why this training ground would be the best for taijutsu."

Looking around him Naruto was surprised Konoha had such diverse training grounds. They were currently standing in a flat grassy area. There were wooden posts lined up in rows all around them. Just beyond that there was an encompassing track tucked back behind the trees that way there would be shade constantly. Off to the side there was a small house with a stream going around and behind its east wall. In each of the separate corners of the grounds there were what appeared to be different biomes. The North-Western corner had a lot of sand and no shade, the North-Eastern corner was a very deep pond with an island in the middle, the South-Western corner had geysers and steam vents that were spewing hot air and liquid, and the South-Eastern corner had another building. Upon closer inspection there was a sign indicating the room was built to replicate snowy and freezing climates.

Looking back to his sensei Naruto formulated his answer, "This training ground would be perfect because of the open space and different weather conditions. That will force who ever trains here to become immune to weather changes in battle. Also the large area in the middle with the posts will allow me to train alongside my clones."

"Very good Naruto, now in order for me to finalize your training schedule I will have to see you fight. Please make one clone and then fight until it gets dispelled."

"Ok," Naruto said as he began to move his hands into the only required hand seal. "**_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_**" With that one perfect copy of the blonde popped into existence. "Ok clone me and you, one on one."

"You're on master."

Both opponents jumped backwards putting about 2 meters of distance between them. _"I wonder how Naruto will fight. He has no formal training." _Itachi thought out as he watched his apprentice take part in his first fight ever.

Looking his clone in the eye Naruto made the first move. Rushing forward Naruto sent a simple palm thrust at the clone's midsection. The clone took a quick step back to the right, narrowly dodging the strike. With both of the opponents knowing their strengths and weaknesses this continued on for a little when Naruto suddenly heard, **"Feign right, hit with the left." **Momentarily distracted Naruto suffered a glancing flow to the chest that knocked the wind from him. Jumping back to gain some distance Naruto saw what the voice was talking about. He could see his clone rushing forward but each stride with the right foot had more power in it. _"I don't know what that voice is but I have got one kick ass conscience." _The clone for his part smirked; his master was just standing there asking to get beat. Relaying all the momentum he built up while moving the clone sent the strongest palm thrust he could muster. Only for his master to send his own strike straight at him. When both palms were inches from hitting each other Naruto quickly pulled his hand back and spun to the left. As he was spinning he transferred some of the motion into his left palm and struck. Hitting the clone straight in the chest it disappeared into a cloud of smoke. Soon clapping could be heard.

"Good job Naruto-kun. You managed to find a weakness in your opponent and use it against him. Now that I have seen you spar we can go over your training schedule. Please sit under the shade while we talk."

Stepping into the shade and sitting in front of his sensei Naruto motioned for Itachi to continue.

"Ok Naruto that was a decent first fight. You have some shinobi elements like the palm thrusts you were using but you still look like a civilian street fighter. Since that is unacceptable we will start you off with the academy style. I have with me twenty scrolls containing the basics of that style. It is quite detailed as it covers all the levels you would have seen in the academy. You will make twenty clones and they will read the scrolls day in and day out until you can perform all the stances and strikes perfectly. As your clones are doing this you will do conditioning and strength training in the different areas we have. You will follow Gai's training applications to a minimal degree. In the morning you will do laps, then you will do kicks and punches from the various styles you will be learning, after that you will have a quick lunch. Following that you will repeat the whole thing. Send your clones out now and we can than continue the conversation after they begin reading."

Nodding Naruto made twenty clones and sent them out to read in the shade. Turning to Itachi he saw that his sensei had written something into the ground with a stick, it read 'Weekly Schedule.'

"Alright Naruto you heard what your training will be like but you will follow an even more demanding weekly time schedule. That will allow you to manage your skills better." Seeing the blonde nod Itachi continued. "On Mondays you will read scrolls with your clones. As soon as you complete a stance I will give you another set of scrolls. From Tuesday to Thursdays you will be doing strength and conditioning as your clones spar and finish reading the scrolls. On Fridays you will fight your clones until you are too tired to continue or you are incapacitated. Saturdays I have set aside to let you work on your own style. Trust me it will be useful and it will take you a long time to make a functioning one. Sundays are your recuperation days, no arguing either or I will knock you out. This is or your own good of course. Does this sound good to you?" Seeing the blonde nod, Itachi continued, "Then get going you will have to spar Lee-san soon."

* * *

Time Skip - 3 Months Later

Itachi was impressed with his brother. Over the course of three months the little knucklehead had reached the level where he could probably take on some of the low genin at the academy and beat them at a straight taijutsu spar. He had mastered the academy style and was starting on his second, the Uchiha's taijutsu stance. He was slowly progressing on his own style opting to using quick movements and palm thrusts, but the kid still didn't have a name for it. Noticing that it was around lunch time he called Naruto over because the spar with Lee was right after lunch.

"Naruto you have been progressing nicely but I have thought of a few ways to make your training more effective and make you more deadly when you are done."

Naruto being the training junky he is was jumping with joy. A new way to make him even better he had to hear this, "What is it sensei, what is it?"

"Well I had two things in mind actually. One I was going to give you training weights. They would allow you to push yourself harder and build more muscle. Two, I was going to give you tips on adding chakra to your strikes like the Hyuga or one of the legendary sannin Tsunade."

"Wow, do you really think I could do that sensei."

"Naruto you have surprised me more than once so I wouldn't doubt it. But enough about your training your spar with Lee-san is in twenty minutes. I want you to do your best, let's go."

* * *

Training Ground 12

"Yosh, Naruto-kun your flames of youth burn brightly this afternoon. Are you ready to fight my youthful apprentice Lee?"

"I'm ready Maito-san."

Walking over to the middle of the training grounds Naruto joined Lee. Both opponents looked each other in the eye and shook hands. Itachi walked over to the duo as the acting proctor and laid out the rules.

"This is a friendly taijutsu spar. No other techniques may be used. The fight will continue until one of the participants gives up or I intervene. Are you ready?" Seeing both apprentices Itachi yelled 'Begin' and **_Shunshin_**ed away.

Immediately Naruto and Lee jumped back and fell into their respective stances. Lee for his part opted to use the 'Strong Fist,' while Naruto fell into the graduating year academy style. Not wanting to wait Naruto dashed forward, when he was within striking distance he extended his palm aiming for Lee's chest. Lee for his part just stood there with one hand behind his back and the other held in a simple guard. When Naruto was about to hit him, Lee quickly pivoted to the right gaining momentum with his outstretched hand, he then jumped into the air charging a kick at Naruto's midsection. Sensing the incoming strike Naruto turned and tensed readying for a strike. What Naruto didn't realise was Lee was being trained by a taijutsu master and their hits were like getting struck by semi-trucks. Blocking the incoming strike Naruto heard what he assumed was a rib crack, then the momentum proceeded to make him fly back and hit a tree. Struggling to his feet Naruto was amazed at how fast and strong Lee was. Determined to get at least one hit on Lee, Naruto settled back down into his stance. Rushing forward again, Naruto added some feigns and footwork from the Uchiha style to confuse Lee. Never seeing this style before Lee was forced to defend and block against all the hits, slowly but surely Naruto was pushing him back. Finally seeing an opening Naruto thrust his palm straight at Lee. Expecting the strike to be blocked Naruto readied his other hand. When Lee moved to hit his arm Naruto pulled back lashed out with his other hand and grabbed a hold of Lee's wrist. Seeing his chance Naruto launched forward with all his might and slammed his palm into Lee's chest. Naruto was ecstatic, "Yes I finally got a…"

Slam!

Naruto never got to finish because he was knocked out cold by a recovered Lee.

Itachi mentally sighed to himself and vowed to teach Naruto the importance of finishing off the enemy. Turning to face Gai Itachi said, "Thank you Maito-san, your apprentice gave Naruto a good spar and hopefully provided him with enough inspiration to double his efforts."

"I should be thanking you Itachi-san. Naruto's flames of youth burn very brightly. I say he will probably learn three more taijutsu stances before he starts the academy."

"It is good to hear that from Konoha's taijutsu specialist. I hope your apprentice continues to get stronger." With that Itachi picked Naruto up and left for the training ground.

* * *

Training Ground 19

Setting Naruto down so he could tend to the welt on his head Itachi asked, "Naruto what did you think of Lee-san?"

"He is amazing. I know he was wearing weights and I'm glad he didn't take them off. He was really fast and strong. I see why you wanted to get me training weights and I will use them without complaining. Next time I spar against Lee I am going to win."

"It's good to see such a strong resolve Naruto. Here are some five pound weights for all your limbs. It might not seem like a lot but once you start training you will see why. From now on when you are fighting your clones you have to keep the weights on, that will cause you to add elements from other styles to catch yourself off guard. Now go back to training."

"OK"

* * *

Time Skip – 8 Months Later (Last Month)

Once again Itachi was impressed with Naruto and Gai's surprisingly accurate guess at Naruto's abilities. Naruto had learned three more taijutsu stances. Two of them were simple Konoha traditional stances and the third was a variation of one from Kumo. Naruto was still working on the Uchiha style but that was because it was so broad. Not having a sharingnan Itachi had to make some adaptations for Naruto. The little knuckle head also had his weights up to twenty pounds each and he was starting to grasp chakra controlled hits. Seeing the sun setting on this beautiful Friday night Itachi called Naruto in and told him to go to sleep. Being too tired from fighting his clones all day Naruto just walked into the house sat on the couch and crashed.

* * *

Mindscape

Naruto was currently in the middle of the arena. The crowd was going wild, chanting 'NARU-TO!' He had just defeated his twentieth opponent in a row. A feat only his sensei had done. Naruto was about to call out to his last opponent when he heard a chuckling. Never one to back down Naruto yelled out into the crowd, "Who dares fight the awesome, great, cunning, funny, Naruto Uzumaki!"

**"Kit that introduction is way too long."**

Naruto for his part just thought this voice was still his conscience.

"Hey conscience thanks for the tip with my fight earlier in the year. Also if you're my thoughts and what not, do you have any more ideas on the taijutsu stance were creating."

The kyuubi couldn't be happier. The boy got straight to the point it was trying to make.

**"I have a few… Would you like to hear them?"**

"Sure."

**"First the name I thought of is Kage Kitsune. You seem to favour palm strikes, a more silent type of striking so I thought you could focus on becoming one with the shadows. Right now you can only apply physical stealth but when we get you chakra control up you will be almost invisible, through genjutsu. The kitsune part describes the frequency of attack. Foxes are cunning quick creatures. You will constantly be moving and when the opportunity arises you strike. Your defence will rely on speed.**"

"Sounds good. Also with chakra control I was going to try and mimic **_Juken_**. Just because I can't see the chakra points, it doesn't mean that they are not there."

**"That is an interesting idea. It is almost day time; I suggest you tell your sensei about your new thoughts to your taijutsu stance. Remember though, you are not to tell anyone of this talk. They will think you are crazy."**

"Thank you conscience," with that Naruto willed himself awake.

**"He is growing day in and out. Still not strong enough to warrant my presence but still it is a start. He could also use our demon chakra in that stance but we will talk when the time comes. When he finally learns of my existence his face will be priceless."**

* * *

Morning – House at Training Ground19

Sitting up Naruto could see it was fairly earlier in the morning and he wouldn't be starting for at least three more hours, not that he really cared because he just got some news on his taijutsu style.

"Itachi-sensei wake up I got some big news to tell you about my taijutsu stance."

"Ughh," Itachi groaned, "Naruto it's three in the morning what the hell do you have to tell me that is so important."

"Well I have decided to call my taijutsu stance **_Kage Kitsune_** it will revolve around extremely quiet and frequent strikes that will devastate the enemy. When I learn genjutsu better I will be almost invisible and I am going to mimic the **_Juken._** Tenketsu are invisible to the naked eye but they are still there."

"Naruto where did you learn all of this."

"I… ughhh… have been thinking about it for a while I guess," Naruto mentally berated himself for such a stupid lie.

Itachi didn't fall for it one bit but he let it slide, it was there last day here. They would be packing up and Naruto would start his intelligence training when they got back.

"Regardless of your sources it sounds like it will be a formidable style when completed. Naruto today is our last day here and since you so kindly woke me up this early you will be packing all of our stuff. No arguing or I won't tell you about your parents like I planned."

Naruto was about to argue when he heard the comment about his parents. Muttering to himself about 'lazy ass teachers' he set to work.

* * *

Uchiha Estate – In Front of Library

Naruto had walked past these double doors a couple of times during his stay and always wanted to go in, but Itachi always told him it was not his place.

"Naruto this is one of two libraries we have here at the estate. This one has books pertaining to academy subjects, Konoha's clans, medical jutsu, and myths of the Land of Fire. You will be studying in here for the next year. Why don't you go in?"

"OK"

Walking up Naruto reached up with both his hands and placed them face down on the brass handles. Slowly grasping the cool metal, Naruto took a deep breath in. When he let it out he slowly pushed both doors open. When his eyes adjusted to the dimmer light levels in the library he was amazed. The room was easily a couple stories tall and about a city block wide. Each wall was filled with bookcases filled to the top.

"Wow…"

"Wow is right Naruto-kun and this is where you will be studying for the next year…"

* * *

**Jutsu:**

**Kage Kitsune: **Shadow fox

**Kage Bunshin: **Shadow clone

**Shunshin: **Body flicker technique

**Juken: **Gentle fist

A/N: As always what did you think? Also if you have any tips on fighting I will gladly accept them. I find it extremely hard to describe a fight. I am going to say this now Naruto will not be some overly powerful person, well not right away anyhow. The training chapters won't all be this boring (I thought it was), this chapter needed to be done though because I feel that when stories skip too much time, the overall effect of what he actually went through is lost. On the note of time skips do you like my format for them? I will always try and notify you. Also the conversation Jiraiya had with Sarutobi won't be discussed again for a while, that's just to keep you guessing. As always please don't flame me if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	5. Chapter 5 - Family Secrets

Crimson Fracture

**Bold** – Kyuubi talking

**Bold and Underline** – Kyuubi thinking

_Italics_ – Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics_** – Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 5 – Family Secrets

Uchiha Estate – Library

"Alright Naruto-kun please sit down. I am going to be telling you about your parents now."

When Naruto registered what Itachi said he didn't know how to be, how to act in his own body. The words were surreal, 'your parents'. Up until a year ago he didn't think anything of them. Then his niisan came and requested he be trained and told his true heritage. 'Heritage,' were his parents really that great. Could they be powerful shinobi, or were they a good civilian clan. The questions kept flooding into the young blondes head. Stealing one last look at the library Naruto settled down and asked Itachi to continue.

"Sensei please tell me who they were."

"I will start with your kaasan. Your kaasan's name was Kushina Uzumaki. She was from the now destroyed village of Uzushiogakure. She was renowned as the most beautiful woman and broke many hearts until she met your father. She had red hair, blue eyes and was known to have a quick temper which earned her the nickname 'Red Hot-Blooded Habanero'. Once you got to know her though she was the calmest and most level headed person you could find. It also seems you have inherited her fighting style, which mainly consisted of strong taijutsu and strong ninjustsu. Naruto-kun one thing you should know about your kaasan is she loved you greatly and would stop at nothing to protect you or your father, even if that meant giving up her life… Along with the rest of the clan Kushina was very good with fuinjutsu. But she also possessed something that only a few in Uzumaki histories have achieved and that is your bloodline…"

Letting all the information sink in Naruto realised what Itachi just said. "Wait, I have a bloodline?"

"You most likely will as you are a direct descendant of someone who had it but you never know. The Uzumaki bloodline was called **_Yoso Baransu_**. This bloodline gives the individual the two elemental affinities that their natural is weak against. It also allows the user, when they have mastery over all their elements to combine them into releases such as ice or wood. The Uzumaki were distant relatives of the Senju, the only clan able to do the wood release and the Yuki clan who specialise in ice justsu was founded by some exiled Uzumaki. I will train you to the best of my abilities but since I cannot mix elemental chakra that part will be up to you."

Once again hearing his Nissan pause Naruto thought of everything he was just told. _"My mother was a strong shinobi with a rare bloodline, she was kind and she looked out for her loved ones. I'll make you proud mom."_ Looking up at his niisan's eyes Naruto said, "Thank you Itachi-nii for telling me this. It's good to hear good things about my kaasan. But you should tell Mikoto-sama that she is as much my kaasan as ever and I will continue to address her as such. Now please tell me about my father."

Taking in a deep breath Itachi thought to himself _"Let's make this fun."_

"Yondaime…"

When Itachi didn't continue Naruto was confused.

"What about the Yondaime Itachi-nii?"

"What do you mean Naruto-kun?"

"I mean I just asked you about my father and you said…"

Itachi saw a light go off in Naruto's head. _"Oh this is going to be good." _10 seconds past… 30 seconds past… 1 minute past, _"All right what the hell I better check on him." _Getting up and walking over Itachi nudged Naruto's shoulder. When there was no response Itachi looked into his eyes. There was no shine or thought behind them, _"damn kid fainted with his eyes open. Well I better smack him awake." _Pulling his right hand back in an arching motion Itachi sent Naruto a painful slap to the face.

Smack!

"Oh what was that for Itachi-nii?"

"You fainted after I told you who your father was. Now if you don't mind and don't faint again I would like to tell you the rest of your heritage."

A little embarrassed about the whole fainting thing Naruto nodded for Itachi to continue.

"All right then, Minato Namikaze the Yondaime of Konoha was your father. Minato was calm, collected, and highly perceptive. He also seemed well aware of the terror his reputation inspired in his foes. He didn't like freely speaking about others' pasts, and was said to be a very nice person. He was a ninja prodigy much like you and was known for his two original techniques; **_Rasengan _**and **_Hiraishin_**. Even though he never completed the **_Rasengan _**it was still a very dangerous technique. The Namikaze were a very secretive clan that seemingly just popped up one day and left us your father. I am currently studying to see if I can uncover more about them. I do not think they had a bloodline but it might enable us to learn why only your father could use the **_Hiraishin_**. So what do you think Naruto? Are you happy to know who your parents were?"

Naruto's head was spinning but he did manage to formulate an answer, "its amazing Itachi-nii, who would have thought the person I look up to would be my father."

"Since this is a lot to think about I will give you the day off. Tomorrow we will start your training full force. I will explain it to you in the morning. I'm sure you would make your parents proud."

"Thanks niisan."

* * *

The Next Day…

"All right sensei how will my training go this time?"

"For the next 3 ½ months you will be cramming knowledge of Konoha's clans into your brain. You will have to study the: Haruno, Inuzuka, Nara, Akimichi, Uchiha, Aburame, Hyuga, Senju, Hiruzen, and Yamanaka. You will have 2 clones assigned to each clan and at the end of this time I will quiz you. I will be expecting text book answers off the top of your head or you will fail and have to study them longer. Also please remember to dispel your clones one at a time. We don't want you to black out from a massive headache again. After that you will study school subjects for 4 ½ months. As long as it seems this is only to cram 5 years of school work into your head. You will make 20 clones that will be enough for 4 to study each subject. Once that is done I will give you free reign of this library. During this period you may study anything you want in depth. Does this sound good to you?"

Thinking of his free reign period Naruto quickly replied "Sounds great."

"Then get going your quiz will be in 2556.7 hours."

* * *

Time Skip - 3 ½ Months Later – Test Time

"OK Naruto this is how your test will go. I will rifle off three questions at a time. They will be one word answers which will be the respective clan names. There will be three sets of these questions. They will get progressively more detailed and difficult. Should you get any of the questions wrong you will have to try again or study for another week, it's my call. Now are you ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," Naruto said while smirking.

"Then get ready, the first set of questions will be in 5 seconds."

5…4…3…2…1

"Name the three clans which tend to these animals; Kikaichu, Dogs, and deer."

"Aburame, Inuzuka, and Nara."

"Name the first three Hokage and their specialties."

"Hashirama Senju, specialised in wood release and was renowned as the strongest shinobi. He also had the power to control tailed beasts. Tobirama Senju, specialised in water justsu. He was able to utilise complex water techniques with one hand seal and create water from thin air. Sarutobi Hiruzen, specialises in fire and earth release. He was renowned as the god of shinobi in his prime. Mainly recognised when fighting with his personal summon Enma the boss summon of Monkeys."

"Very good but can you answer the last question? What are the reasons bloodlines are so feared in some areas, to that respect what are the two most feared bloodlines in Konoha currently?"

"Bloodlines are feared for the lack of knowledge on some of them. Their techniques cannot be taught unless you are a member of that clan or have a bloodline transferred to you that is organ selective like the sharingan. They are generally powerful and when used right they are a force to be dealt with. Currently in Konoha the two most feared bloodlines are the sharingan and the byakugan. They are both organ selective to the eye and give the user great advantages in battle."

"Naruto…"

_"Please gods don't let me fail."_

"You pass congratulations."

"Yahoo, I don't have to study that anymore. I was starting to feel like a historian."

"As good as that is you now have to study school subject for 4 ½ months. Have fun." And with that Itachi **_Shunshin_**ed away. When he got to the other side of the estate he, along with everyone else in Konoha heard,

"NANI, I DON'T GET A BREAK"

* * *

Time Skip – 4 ½ months

Itachi couldn't believe his blonde brother right now. For 4 ½ months Naruto locked himself in the library only coming out for food and locking the door as soon as he was done. Itachi thought maybe Naruto had gotten over the whole no brake in between studying thing like an adult. How wrong he was. After the time ran out Itachi woke up and found the doors open to the library. Naruto was sitting at the big mahogany desk they had looking right at him. As soon as Itachi saw him though, dread washed over him. There he was staring at him with a huge smile on his face. Walking slowly up to the blonde Itachi was about to ask what he was so happy about when he looked at the desk. There scratched into the most expensive mahogany desk that he owned was tally marks of everyday that went by. The title that adorned this work was 'slave driver niisan gets what he deserves.'

Itachi looked up at Naruto, his three tomeo spinning wildly in his eyes and he screamed,

"NARUTO!"

* * *

A few minutes later…

After Naruto calmed Itachi down from wanting to kill him to being mildly pissed he thought it was good enough to start a conversation.

"So sensei do I get my free reign starting today?"

"I really shouldn't give it to your immature ass but you did do what I asked so there is no need to be unprofessional about it. Go ahead and leave me alone."

"Thank you sensei."

* * *

The Next Day…

_"I wonder where I should start?"_

**"Maybe you should find some medical books. Tenketsu like you wanted to study were called blood points at one time. Find the oldest book in this library."**

_"Oh thanks conscience. I have a question though how do you know that? Do you remember everything I read and hear?"_

**"Uhh… Yes, yes I do. Everything you read and hear I remember and can inform you about at a later date."**

Naruto being satisfied with the answer left to quench his curiosity and find the oldest medical book in the library. After searching for 10 minutes Naruto found himself at the back end of the library. Reaching up to a shelf he tried to pull out the medical book. Try is the key word because it tilted back and made a clicking sound. Slowly the wall opened and a dimly lit staircase went down.

_"I should tell Itachi-nii about this"_

**"Get some balls kit. Shinobi have secrets and you have yours, now go down there or I'm never helping you again."**

_"OK, ok."_

As Naruto started going down the stairs the door shut and locked behind him, leaving him almost in a pitch black room. Stealing his nerves Naruto continued downward. After what seemed like an eternity Naruto reached the end. The room if you could call it that was quite small and dusty. I didn't look like it had been used for quite some time. In one corner there was a desk which looked like someone quickly grabbed all they could as they were rushing out. But in the other corner was what really drew Naruto in. There was a statue of a shinobi with a giant battle fan on his back. Even though it wasn't real you could tell this man was very powerful.

**"Before you go to the statue grab some of those scrolls over there. They could have powerful techniques that are now a lost art."**

_"Good point."_

Naruto then walked over to the table and grabbed all of them. Itachi showed him how to use storage scrolls earlier in the year and since he didn't want to carry around all his stuff always he just put it in scrolls. Walking over to the statue he saw a notice carved into the wall.

"Only those with the power of an Uchiha can read the passage of right. May there be a time when he with the final step unlocked can read my words – Madara Uchiha."

After reading that Naruto could have sworn he heard a feral growling noise. Looking around he noticed he was still the only one down there. Deciding he had nothing to lose by looking at the inscriptions, even if he couldn't read them, it would be interesting none the less.

Scanning from the top to the bottom Naruto couldn't understand a single symbol. But then when he reached the bottom he noticed some of the statue was chipped away and what appeared to be an arrow pointing to the back. Inching his way around the statue he found there was more on the back and upon looking over it he could read it.

_"Wait I'm not Uchiha how can I read this?"_

**"Who cares, just read the damn thing."**

_"OK, jeeze."_

This is what it read, "Only the chosen may read my plea. For he will be the savior when I am no longer around. Here in the final moments of my life I leave what needs to be said. Hanyo. Our brethren that we once held so dear that get shunned and killed for their burdens. They are the saviors that hold the chakra that I so faithfully split from the lord of hell and chaos. Their numbers are dwindling and I fear that only the nine tailed could form a pact with a mortal anymore. But what are the chances of that? The actions of a few murderous men have damned the existence of all my kind. May he who carries the burden find the last evidence of my existence and save our world. – Rik…"

The rest was of the message scratched off.

**"Kit I know that is a lot to take in but if we stay down here to long we will attract attention. I suggest you go back to your room and think about everything you heard."**

Naruto didn't even respond. He just got up and left, with his new found knowledge and scrolls. Getting out of the library Naruto headed straight for his room. As he was passing by the kitchen Itachi saw him and yelled out, "hey Naruto want some ramen." For the first time in his life Naruto didn't even react he just went to his room closed the door and locked it.

Itachi for his part looked at his kaasan who was standing next to him and said, "What the hell happened to him today."

And they would never know because for the next 3 months Naruto would deny that he ever refused to eat ramen.

* * *

Time Skip – Day before Academy Starts

Itachi soon learned after the whole ramen existence that if Naruto didn't want to talk about something he wouldn't. So putting the whole thing aside for investigation later Itachi looked at the calendar. Slowly a smile crept on to his face and he couldn't help himself.

"Hey Naruto did you know that on the first day at the academy 6th years come and give the first years dunks in the toilets, head first."

"They what? Stop kidding around niisan."

"No joke, it's a survival of the fittest world Naruto. If you can't handle yourself you get dunked in to toilets."

"That's not funny niisan."

"I know if it was funny I would say, look here Naruto on the first day you get to go swimming in the toilets."

Naruto for his part wasn't sure if this was Itachi or not. He was making way too many jokes.

"Are you really Itachi because the one I know wouldn't make so many jokes."

"Look Naruto I had a good time there as a kid. Any way enough about this there are some things I have noticed and found out that I am supposed to notify you on."

"What is it niisan?"

"Well kaasan wanted me to tell you that she legally adopted you over the year and the paperwork has finally gone through. You are now an Uchiha as well. Also after speaking with Hokage-sama he has informed me that you will be able to tell who ever you wish your true heritage and anything else you learn to those you see fit. Apart from all this news I have noticed that when you are not in battle or exhausted you can now use the **_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu _**without hand seals. That is a great achievement Naruto. Not many shinobi can do jutsu without hand seals."

"Wow thank you for the praise niisan. It also feels really good to be a part of the family fully now too. It's also cool that I can finally tell my friends who my parents were."

"Just make sure you don't abuse your privileges Naruto."

"Don't worry niisan I will make kaasan and everyone happy."

"That's good Naruto now you should get some rest before tomorrow. Anything can happen at the academy. Most of it good but some of it bad."

"OK."

Turning towards his room Naruto left with a huge grin on his face. He was finally going to see his friends again and boy would they be surprised.

* * *

Mindscape

**"It is almost time for me to reveal myself to the kit. He has grown quite a bit and learned some interesting things. I wonder how that bastard Madara got his hands on to the Rikudou Sennin's prophecy. No doubt misread do to the seal underneath the base but still… The kit proved he was able to handle the emotion of hate last time I tested him, now it is for the test of desire. May god help him."**

Breaking off from his musing the kyuubi saw Naruto living in one of his simpler dreams. He was simply sitting in a flower field playing with his friends. Only his female friends, but still his friends. They appeared to be talking about dreams and goals. Something the kyuubi noticed the kid was obsessed about. Time to start the trail, forcefully erasing Naruto of his thoughts and dreams the kyuubi place the boy in the middle of a grassy field and spoke to him.

**"Last test that was held you passed, you showed the abilities to control hate. Are you ready for another trail kit?"**

"You bet conscience."

**"When will he figure it out?" **the kyuubi thought to itself before starting. **"What if I told you that through our reading I found a way to quadruple your training. That with this new way you would be jonin by your second year in the academy and when you graduated you would be a high Kage level. But there is one ultimate price, are you willing to hear it."**

Exited at the thought of being kage level Naruto responded quickly "Yes tell me now."

**"You will have to kill all of you friends except the one you love the most. That will allow you to unlock your full potential and become stronger than ever before. Do you agree?"**

Naruto was appalled, but what scared him even more was the difficulty to form his answer. He wanted power but that power was going to be used to save all of his friends, not one. Struggling with the one syllable word Naruto finally spit it out, "NO."

**"Are you sure? You came into this world with only your jiisan loving you. Why not build up power to surpass him and then protect him from everything. Pay him back if you will."**

Gathering his resolve Naruto stated, "The answer is still no. even if it takes me 20 years, 30 years to master everything or to become even remotely strong enough to protect my loved ones I will take that time. I do not value their lives more than the other and as tempting as power can be I will not let it corrupt me. I will protect my loved ones through my own power because that is my way of the ninja."

The silence that followed Naruto's proclamation was almost sickening. After what seemed like forever ended the voice finally said, **"Good job kit, you have passed the second trial. May you forever remember your words here today for knowing you, you will need them in the coming years. The academy will be starting soon. Please wake up and enjoy a day with your friends."**

"Will do conscience."

**"Sometimes his stupidity amazes me."**

And with that Naruto would wake up to his very first day of the academy, where many interesting, fun, and very troublesome events were about to occur.

* * *

**Jutsu:**

**Kage Bunshin: **Shadow clone

**Shunshin: **Body flicker technique

**Rasengan: **Spiralling Sphere

**Hiraishin: **Flying Thunder God

A/N: As always what did you think? The bloodline I gave Kushina and maybe Naruto (Not telling yet) **Yoso Baransu** literally means element balance (Google translate) I think it would be a nice fit. Also what do you think Itachi will find out about the Namikaze? Can anyone guess who that message was from on Madara's statue? So many unanswered questions it makes me happy to keep writing. I just hope that the loose ends aren't pissing you off. They are there for suspense and mystery. They will be answered though don't you readers fret. As always please don't flame me if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	6. Chapter 6 - Reconnecting With Friends

Crimson Fracture

**Bold** – Kyuubi talking

**Bold and Underline** – Kyuubi thinking

_Italics_ – Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics_** – Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 6 – Reconnecting With Friends

Early Morning – Uchiha Estate

_"Wow I can't believe I will get to see my friends again. I wonder how much they have changed? I wonder if they will recognise me?"_

As Naruto was getting up he couldn't help but think about his training over the past two years. He was probably the strongest in his grade and only weaker than a few in the whole academy. Book smarts he was probably equal or above Sakura but it was anybody's guess when it came to Skikamaru. He was going to make sure to challenge that lazy kid to shogi. Boy would he be surprised when he realised he wasn't a pushover either. He had learned from Itachi over the summer and got hooked. He then took to studying strategies from the library and could handle himself pretty well. Itachi was no longer a challenge so Naruto always had to play against a clone and those games always lasted really long because he was essentially playing against a book that knew next to every strategy in that game. Pushing that to the back of his mind Naruto decided to go downstairs and get some breakfast. He was also hoping to talk to Sasuke; it seemed that he was still mad at Naruto.

Walking out of his room Naruto turned down the hall and saw Itachi standing in the door frame. Jogging up to him Naruto placed his hand on Itachi's shoulder and said "Hey niisan, why are you still here? Did you grow soft over the years and perhaps you want to say goodbye to your favourite blonde?"

"No you blonde dummy I am here to see both my otouto's off to the academy," turning to the kitchen again Itachi said, "Although it seems you missed the other dummy because he just left."

Stepping in to the kitchen Naruto saw the door swing shut and was a little disappointed. Now he wouldn't be able to talk to Sasuke until the end of the day because he was sure the first day of the academy was going to be very busy. Thanking Itachi before he left Naruto turned and sat down at the table. He placed his hands on the cool counter top and started tapping his fingers, trying to decide what to eat. _"No one's here to make ramen. I am too lazy to make something… Oh I got it I will get some fruit from the back."_

Stepping down from his seat Naruto went to the back to find the best apple he could. After 5 minutes of searching he found the biggest, reddest, shiniest apple he had ever seen. Rushing back to the kitchen to eat because he was running out of time he almost bumped into Mikoto when he didn't see her.

"Sorry kaasan I didn't see you."

"It's Ok Naru-kun, how about I walk you to school like all the other kids? Would you like that?"

"Sounds good kaasan."

* * *

Just Outside of the Academy…

Three girls were currently standing outside of the academy with their respective parent or guardian and were thinking the same thing, _"Where is Naruto-kun?"_

Turning to face each other the girls all noticed themselves filled with worry. Quickly pivoting away so the others couldn't see their now blushing faces, their parents chuckled. They knew how much of an impact Naruto made on their lives and they were glad to see that they now cared for a friend deeply. Hearing Iruka, the teacher for this year's genin ushering everyone in to get situated, so they could start introductions, the parents and guardians let their kids go.

"Have a good day sweetie."

"Go get them tiger."

Now being filled with worry about being embarrassed in front of the class, the kids all nervously and quietly filed in to the classroom.

* * *

Random Street in Konoha

"Kaasan can't we walk faster, I am going to be late."

"Don't worry Naru-kun I planned it out so we get there at the end of introductions. That way we don't have to wait outside with all the parents and deal with annoying civilians."

"Wow kaasan you thought of everything."

"Well now you flatter me Naru-kun. How about this, for being such a good boy lately, subtracts the mahogany desk incident," Naruto's eyes widened at that, "At the end of the day today, I will tell you about another piece of your heritage. Don't you worry either, I have already asked Itachi and he said it would be good for someone else to inform you some of your background. Sound good?"

"That is perfect kaasan."

"Glad to hear it Naru-kun… Oh look we got to the academy without even realising it."

Turning to look in front of him he couldn't believe it. He was finally here, the place where he would somewhat become a ninja, but more importantly the place where he would meet his friends.

Before Naruto could turn around Mikoto planted a kiss to the top of his head, ruffled his hair a little and told him, "Have a good day Naru-kun. Make your families proud."

Running off to join the others Naruto stopped at the top step, turned to his kaasan and said, "Don't worry kaasan, I will make you proud."

With that Naruto left to find his classroom.

* * *

Room 119 – Just Outside

Naruto's heart was beating so fast he thought that maybe it was trying to escape. Talking a few deep breaths he could hear people introducing themselves in front of the class. Really focusing his hearing he heard,

"… Yamanaka is my name and don't you forget it." Naruto for his part just smiled and thought _"Same old Ino."_ Listening back in he caught her little speech, "I like my friends and a certain Blondie who left about two years ago. He taught me and his other friend's one thing and that is if you mess with any of us especially him we will defend him. Even that lazy, sleepy head in the corner over there. Isn't that right Shikamaru?"

Naruto could hear the class snicker and Shikamaru mutter. Gaining his courage he opened the door quietly. Walking in Naruto realised nobody notice him yet. It seemed that as soon as Ino was done they were allowed to go and talk amongst themselves to get to know each other better. Walking over to the sensei's desk Naruto cleared his throat, just loud enough for the teacher to hear him. Seeing the man turn Naruto said "Iruka-sensei I am also a student in your class. I was late today because my kaasan insisted we talk on our way here. I also suspect we took the long way but I wasn't paying attention. Would it be Ok if I introduce myself to the class?"

Iruka looked the kid up and down, seeing him smiling he answered, "Sure thing kid." Turning to face the rest of the class Iruka raised his voice so they could hear, "All right everyone be quiet, we have one more student in our class and I think you would like to meet him."

As soon as the class heard that it went silent. Everyone was looking around, beside them, under desks, out the window, everywhere but at Iruka of course. They just wanted to see the kid. Thoughts were ranging from,

_"I wonder if it is Naruto-kun?"_

_"Damn more competition."_

_"Troublesome…"_

Seeing all of his peers quiet down Naruto started his introduction.

"Hello everyone, my name is Naruto Namikaze Uzumaki Uchiha. May we become good friends over the course of our time at the academy?"

Silence.

Naruto now feeling a little uneasy looked over to Iruka. Feeling the kid's uneasiness took it upon himself to get the classroom going.

"Does anybody have a question for Naruto?"

Immediately all the hands shot up. Groaning to himself he just picked the kid that sat the farthest to the left, her name was Sakura or something like that.

Sakura for her part smiled at being chosen first and asked the question that several of her friends were thinking, "Are you really Naruto-kun, the one that I am thinking of any way?"

_"Did I suddenly change? I don't think I look any different."_

**"It's the name kit."**

_"Good call conscience."_

Thinking of the best way to answer Naruto found it, "Of course I am Sakura-chan. I can prove it to." Pointing around the room he spotted the two people he was looking for. "You see over there is Ino-chan and Hinata-chan. If you still don't believe me maybe this will convince you. Amaririsu Belladonna, Hinageshi, and Tsutsuji." Finishing the answer with a smile on his face because he could see the three girls blush a little.

"Thank you for answering my question Naruto-kun. We have much to catch up on, please join us for lunch." With that Sakura sat down and several hands around the room dropped.

Iruka silently thanked god that some of the questions were going to be doubles. Looking around the room he randomly picked another student.

"If you are an Uchiha are you Sasuke-kun's brother?"

"Yes in fact I am his ni…"

Naruto never got to finish.

"That dobe isn't my brother. End of discussion."

Iruka sensing some tension settling back in the class told the students that questions were over and they would have to start lessons soon. Seeing no other desks open he sent Naruto straight to the back where Shikamaru was sitting.

Naruto stole one last glance at Sasuke then walked over to his desk. When he sat down he turned to Shikamaru and said, "Hey buddy long time no see."

"Yeah it has been a while Naruto."

"I got two things to ask you, if that's OK."

"Sure what do you want to know?"

"I was wondering if you would want to play shogi after school and if you could wake me up at lunch, I am still kind of sleepy."

Before Shikamaru could respond the blonde put his head on the desk and was out like a light.

"Way too troublesome."

With that Shikamaru put his head down and the two went to sleep. A trend that annoyed Iruka to no end because they did it every day, at every class, no matter what.

* * *

Lunch Time

Naruto was currently having a nice dream about pranking people with Anko when he swore he heard a far away voice say, "Naruto if you don't get up I will let Sakura punch you." It strangely sounded like Kiba. Not thinking anything of it Naruto went back to his dream, or he was when he suddenly got punched in the back of the head. The force behind it instantly gave him a good bump. Not expecting the hit Naruto snapped his eyes open and looked around. Kiba was on the ground laughing, Hinata looked slightly worried, Sakura looked like she accomplished something and Ino was just arriving holding on to 4 bento boxes. Not really understanding what was happening he heard Ino speak up.

"All right Kiba you can go now. Lunch will be between Hinata, Sakura and me today. You can talk to Naruto after school."

Naruto was expecting Kiba to put up an argument but instead he just jammed his hands in his pockets and left. Naruto vowed to ask Ino about that. Looking up so he could look in to their eyes Naruto said, "So how have you been doing?" Expecting a hundred questions a second Naruto wasn't disappointed.

"You really got adopted? What is it like? How strong are you? Why was Sasuke like that? We should go to clan diners again. Is Itachi cool? Did you say your name was Namikaze? How are you related to the fourth Hokage?"

"Please calm down; Sakura, Ino, Hinata, I will explain everything Ok." Seeing them settle down Naruto continued, "Yes I really got adopted. I'm kind of strong I guess. Sasuke and I are not on good terms. I also think we should go to clan diners again. Itachi-nii is so cool, he can do everything. Yes I said my name was Namikaze as well. The fourth Hokage was my father. Do you have any other questions?"

Seeing a blank look across all three of their faces Naruto decided it was time for lunch. Handing all of the bento boxes out he say back down and spoke for all three of them, "Itadakimasu."

* * *

End of the Academy day – Grounds Just Outside

The rest of the school day after lunch was more introductory classes on what they were going to be studying. Naruto already knew all the material in the academy so he mainly fazed in and out all day. His thoughts were stuck on Sasuke and how he could get his otouto to act friendlier. Naruto cut himself from his musing when he saw Shikamaru walking over to with a shogi board in hand. Deciding to get focused on the game Naruto motioned for Shikamaru to sit in front of him and then he sat in a meditative position.

Shikamaru merely raised an eyebrow sat down and set the game up.

Shikaku who was sent to pick up his son saw him setting up a shogi board, seeing as it was Naruto he figured it would be a quick game. Walking over to the duo he couldn't help himself, "So Naruto how much of a handicap will Shika here have to give you this time."

Seeing the blonde turn to face him he saw a look of lazy confidence in his eyes, the only other person he saw that in was his son and that worried him greatly.

"I don't plan on being treated like someone who can't play this game Shikaku-sama. Shikamaru and I will be playing a full game so I suggest you get comfortable, this will be the longest game you have seen."

Not really believing the kid Shikaku sat down because his legs were getting tired. He figured they would be here twenty minutes max. The longest game he has seen Shikamaru play had only been about half an hour. His friends just didn't have the patience Shikamaru did.

Once again Naruto was out to do the impossible.

* * *

2 ½ hours later…

"Wake up father, Naruto just left."

"Uhhhh," Shikaku groaned as he got up. "Why did the game take so long? Did you have to explain the rules to him again or something? You know what who cares, just tell me how bad did you beat him?"

"…"

"You have to speak up Shikamaru I didn't hear you."

"I… lost."

"Wait, what? Last time you played the kid you crushed him what happened?"

"He said last year during his training he had some free time and took up shogi. Studying it for two months he found strategies I didn't even know existed. He also said that my playing style was 1 kyu opposed to his 1 dan. He explained that if I had harder competition to play I would be better than him in no time. He offered to play me at shogi after academy hours two times a week. Now we better get going before kaasan tears up the village looking for our lazy behinds."

Shikaku was stunned so he just followed his son home.

* * *

With Naruto

_"That was a great game. It was a lot more interesting than playing with my clones. I wonder what I should do next? Kaasan won't be home for a while and I doubt I will be able to find Sasuke. I am kind of hungry… Let's go see Anko-chan."_

Sprinting down the street Naruto just realised what he said again and almost face faulted.

_"I really, really need to be careful today."_

5 minutes later…

Upon seeing the dango shop Naruto stopped his sprint and walked in to the shop. Being there before the owners gave him a small smile and pointed to Anko, already knowing he was there to see her. Thanking them for the help Naruto looked over and saw a very pretty lady talking to his friend and partner in crime. She had long black hair, and the coolest looking eyes ever, they were red. Deciding he wanted a friend like that Naruto went over to introduce himself. When he was about a meter away he saw Anko move. He lost sight of her but knew she was going to try and cut his cheek with a kunai. Grabbing a metal dango skewer from the table beside him, he held it up in a makeshift guard and barely held the assault back. Soon he heard clapping and he noticed Anko was already sitting down again.

"You have gotten better Naruto that just means I can start to try harder. You better keep your damn senses up. So what do you want?"

"You never change Anko you crazy snake. Well I came here to see if I could talk to you today, just to inform you of my training and then I saw you here with.." Naruto let his sentence trail off as he looked at the woman.

Seeing the young blonde waiting for a response she said, "Kurenai Yuuhi."

"Then I saw you here with Yuuhi-san and decided if she was friends with you she must be pretty cool herself, so I came over to ask if she would like to be my friend."

Before Kurenai could respond Anko piped up, "Naruto how many times I told you that if you act all machine like and too polite in my presence I will hurt you. Now address Kurenai like a friend or I will cut you, you bastard."

Not wanting any conflict Kurenai was about to answer when Naruto interrupted her.

"And how many times did I tell you snake lady that when I meet someone new I will be polite. How long is it going to get through your thick skull, you bitch."

Seeing the beginning of the end of a perfectly good restaurant Kurenai intervened.

"Anko, Naruto settle down!" seeing both parties throw an angry glare her way she couldn't help but think _"These two are so much a like it is scary." _"Anko he was being polite and I think that makes him a gentleman. Naruto anyone who is close enough with Anko who still is alive after talking to her like that is a friend of mine. Please just call me Kurenai-san, Yuuhi-san is a bit too formal for me."

"Thank you Kurenai-san I would be proud to be your friend. Also pardon my attitude earlier I only act like that when I am angry or around that crazy snake over there," Naruto said while pointing at Anko.

"Only monkeys point you little shit." Anko said while trying to lunge at him again. This time she managed to cut his cheek and she settled down after that.

"So now that we are settled down, I have heard Anko tell me on several occasions that you are training with Itachi and you already possess some good stealth. If you ever need help with genjutsu I would be glad to help you Naruto-kun."

The kyuubi almost passed out after hearing that.

**"Accept the offer now or I will read Konoha's history book over and over."**

_"NOOOOOOO."_

"That would be great Kurenai-san. My taijustsu style that I am creating will need high applications of genjutsu when complete. It would be great to have a teacher who doesn't have amplified genjutsu thanks to a bloodline…" Naruto answered. Seeing the sun setting in the background Naruto sighed, "Unfortunately it looks like I must go now, it was nice to meet you Kurenai-san, Anko-chan."

As soon as the words left his mouth he felt a killing intent like no other. There was only one thing that saved him.

**"RUN!"**

And run he did because the spot where he was standing half a second earlier was just stabbed to hell by kunai.

* * *

Behind Some Random Building

Naruto wasn't really sure how far he ran, or how long. Looking around he found himself in some bushes in a part of Konoha he hadn't been to before. He was about to leave when he suddenly heard a soft giggling. Concentrating on the sound Naruto got interested. Following to the other side of the building Naruto saw an old man with white hair looking through a telescope. He had what appeared to be a pencil and paper and was writing stuff down every now and again. When Naruto looked where the old man was looking he saw several women wearing nothing but towels. He immediately realised this man was a pervert and got angry. Anko told him about these bastards and he was not about to let this go. Walking up as quietly as possible Naruto got just in front of the man. Because he was so short the man didn't even notice him. Clenching his fist into a ball Naruto pulled his fist all the way back and punched the front of the telescope. This caused the man to get the most wicked eye poke in Konoha history and fall back in to the bushes.

"Owww what the hell kid, why are you interrupting my research?"

"Because you are a pervert."

"What, how dare you call me a pervert. I am a super pervert."

"You're also old."

"I am not old you stupid kid, get out of here."

"Fine Ero-Sennin." Naruto said as he left before the man could respond.

* * *

Uchiha Estate – Front Porch

When Naruto finally got home he was just about ready to take a nap when he saw Sasuke on the porch. Thinking it was about damn time to talk Naruto ran up to the porch and trapped his brother on the far side.

"Ok Sasuke it is about time we talk."

"Talk about what, how much I hate you?"

Naruto sighed this was going to be hard. "Sasuke why do you say you hate me? Is it because I have been spending so much time with Itachi-nii." Seeing Sasuke sit there not responding Naruto decided this was it. "Sasuke do you know why Itachi-nii trains me? Do you know why I was taken in to this family?"

"He trains you because you are an orphan and he likes you more than me. You were taken in to my family because we felt bad for you."

"Not entirely correct but somewhat close. If you listened to me today you would have heard my name was Namikaze. That is because the fourth Hokage was my father. If other villages found out that I was alive they would send spies to kill me every day of my life. Itachi is only helping me until I am strong enough to help myself. I was taken in by your family because of protection and easy access during my training. But let me tell you something, even if you hate me you will be my otouto just like Itachi is my niisan and Mikoto-sama is my kaasan because I love you guys. You are the family I never had and I will protect you all with my life."

"I'm so-"

Naruto interrupted "No need to be sorry Sasuke. We started off on the wrong foot but let's fix that. Tomorrow I will introduce you to my friends and we can hang out. It will take a while but eventually we will see eye to eye. How does that sound otouto?"

"Sounds good niisan… but I'm only calling you that at home."

"Fine, fine."

Just behind the front door Mikoto smiled to herself. It seems her two youngest would finally start getting along better. That would finally allow Sasuke to grow up and not be so arrogant. Mikoto resolved to tell Naruto more about his heritage after dinner that night.

* * *

Uchiha Estate – Naruto's Room

Knock, knock

"Can I come in Naru-kun?"

"Of course kaasan. Are you here to tell me about the rest of my heritage?"

Letting herself in Mikoto saw Naruto reading a scroll which he quickly put away. Making a mental note to ask him later she sat down and continued with the conversation, "Yes I have Naruto. As you know all Hokage have big estates and mansions, your father was no different. The Namikaze mansion was a bit smaller so it could be hidden but it still existed. It is tucked away in the forest behind the Hokage monument. I will show it to you on your last day of school, but as your mother I will not allow you to move out until you become a chunin in rank. I wanted it to be jonin but Itachi managed to chew me down on the stipulations. What do you think?"

"That sounds good kaasan. Plus I wouldn't leave here until I was that old anyway. I love you guys too much and plus me and Sasuke are friends now."

"That's good to hear Naru-kun. Now please get some rest, you have to get to the academy on time tomorrow. Plus I heard from a certain Nara that you beat his son in shogi, I have a feeling you will be very busy in the coming year." Getting up from where she was sitting Mikoto walked to the door way. When she got there she turned and said, "Goodnight Naru-kun."

"Goodnight kaasan."

With that Naruto finished his very day at the academy. If only he knew how boring it was going to get sometimes because he already knew all of the material, ow well.

* * *

**Jutsu:**

**Wait, there wasn't any?**

A/N: before I go to the whole what did you think part I would like to thank the people who are continuously reviewing my story and helping me get better at writing. I was recently pointed out of writing the 3rd Hokage name wrong and for that I apologise for my big dumb self. I will try to correct my errors in the future. With that out of the way… So what did you think? This chapter is defiantly my longest so far, clocking in at around 4400 words. Looking over my noted for the story I have no idea how it got this long. I have decided to keep the pairing pole up until the chunin exams are done because as soon as I get that far my story is going to turn down a road nobody has ever seen before. One last note is the ranking I gave Shikamaru in shogi is one step bellow professional status and I gave Naruto the first professional status, only because he knows all the different styles he could find. As always please don't flame me if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	7. Chapter 7 - Mansions and Inner Demons

Crimson Fracture

**Bold** – Kyuubi talking

**Bold and Underline** – Kyuubi thinking

_Italics_ – Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics_** – Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 7 – Mansions and Inner Demons

Time Skip – Last Day as Academy First Years

"Uhhhh," Naruto groaned as he got out of bed. Today was the last day of the academy year and Naruto didn't really feel any different. He knew today was going to be a little sad because he was going to have to say good bye to his friends, again. But he also felt energised because tomorrow he could start training with Itachi-nii again and get away from the place that was blabbing stuff in his face for 6 hours a day, stuff that he already knew mind you. Subconsciously following the same routine for the last year Naruto soon found himself in the kitchen with an apple in his hand. Not being fully awake yet Naruto could swear he heard something calling him. Pushing the somewhat annoying sound to the back of his head he continued to eat his apple. Sasuke finally getting fed up with being ignored by his blonde brother snapped.

"Oi, baka-nii we have to start going!" To drive his point even further Sasuke yelled straight into Naruto's ear.

Now a fully awake and somewhat irate Naruto turned to his brother and started their regular shouting contest.

"Oh otouto I think I heard you wrong. Last week's test scores seem to indicate that you, are the bigger idiot between the two of us."

"That's not fair you freak. You somehow crammed all of the academy work into that tiny thing you call your brain. You wait, I will pass you niisan."

"Whatever otouto let's get going or we are going to be late because of you."

Naruto quickly turned and ran out the kitchen. When he reached the front of the estate he heard like everyone else at the house.

"Late because of me. I had to get your lazy ass up and lead it to the kitchen. Get back here niisan so I can kill you and I am not kidding."

Grabbing his ninja gear Sasuke ran off in mock anger to pummel his blonde brother.

Mikoto for her part just smiled as she thought how far her two youngest have come over the year. _"They are the best of friends. I should probably bring Naruto to the clan dinner tonight. I will have him interact with the clan heads before he goes away for two years. I wonder how Naru-kuns friends will react to him leaving this time?"_

* * *

Time skip – End of the Academy

"I hope that you all will continue to advance your studies and skill. Have a fun vacation and I will see you all, if you choose to come back, in a few months time. You are dismissed for the last time this year," Iruka looked over at his students with pride. He had an excellent class filled with very smart kids, some way too lazy for their own good, but smart none the less.

Naruto hearing his sensei's words thought tom himself, _"Funny how fast a year can go by. We had so many good times this year. We got Choji to go on a diet for 1 hour; I got Ino to tell me why Kiba always listens her now. Man I remember that like yesterday."_

Flashback

"Hey Ino-chan can I ask you a question?" Naruto asked as he pulled her away from the others.

_"O my God is he going to tell me I'm pretty or something." _Ino thought forgetting the question part and focusing on her time alone with Naruto. "Sure what is it Naruto-kun?"

"Why does Kiba always listen to you now without even putting up a fight? When we were younger he always used to challenge me relentlessly to races and no one else because he thought I was the top dog. What happened?"

_"So close but so far. I will still beat you Sakura and Hinata."_ Trying to think of the best way to tell the story Ino ended up relaying the whole event. "It's actually kind of funny Naruto. You see the first few weeks after you left, Kiba was really down. So we decided to make him race us and let him win by a tiny bit. But he just had to be stubborn and say that girls were not even worth the effort because they were naturally slower. Now you know Sakura and I so when he said that we saw red and ditched every intention of helping Kiba out. I told him girls weren't worth his time because he couldn't beat a girl at anything any way. Well that just set him off so we did challenges all day. I was against him with Shikamaru, Choji, and Shino as judges. It turns out I beat him at everything we did. He was so humiliated he started shouting we cheated. Then his mother came out and asked what was going on? Kiba said we cheated and then we retaliated by telling his mom what he said about females. Let's just say Kiba received the biggest yelling ever. His mother made him apologise and ever since he kind of just does what I say."

After Naruto heard this he tried his hardest, he really did but it happened anyway.

"Hahahaha! That's so funny. You beat Kiba at everything even his stupid challenge 'who can eat the most BBQ food'."

"Sadly yes."

"Sadly, are you kidding me? You are amazing Ino-chan" Naruto said as he turned and walked away. Unfortunately he didn't get to see the biggest blush ever crawl its way on to Ino's face.

Flashback End

_"Those were great times."_ Cutting himself from his own thoughts Naruto looked up and realised everyone already left. _"Man they must have gone already to get ready for the clan dinner before I leave. How long was I out anyway?"_

**"Approximately 9 minutes and 36 seconds."**

_"Thank you conscience."_

Over the course of the year the voice which Naruto still sadly assumed was his conscience had been talking to him more and more. It started with the voice giving him small tips of advice but now they would have full blown conversations and Naruto would frequently ask questions. Getting up from his desk Naruto left the classroom and proceeded down the hallway. When he got to the big double doors that led outside Naruto slowly pushed them open so his eyes could adjust gradually to the intense sun rays. When he finally got outside Naruto stole one last glance at the academy. _"I guess I will be seeing you in 5 years."_

* * *

Time Skip - Later That Night - Akimichi BBQ – Just Outside

Currently standing outside the restaurant were; Mikoto, Itachi, Sasuke, and Naruto. Fugaku still refused to even acknowledge Naruto so he would not be attending any event the blonde was at. He was also becoming very suspicious and would always disappear for days on end. Mikoto vowed to confront her husband about that later, but now was not the time for that because two of her sons would be leaving the village after tonight and she wanted them to have a great evening. Turning to face them she said, "Naru-kun make sure that you talk to the clan heads tonight. They are very curious about your progress and some might even offer you advice. You can tell them as much as you feel they need to know, but never, not answer a question at all."

"Ok," opening the door Naruto continued, "After you kaasan."

"Why thank you Naru-kun."

Mikoto then walked in to the restaurant. She was followed by Itachi calmly walking in, Naruto trying to follow his brothers lead but couldn't because his other brother Sasuke was poking him in the ribs, trying to one up Naruto before they left. The duo of "Baka-brothers," as Itachi referred to them started a rivalry at one point. Now they were always trying to up the other one through any means necessary. When they finally reached the table she had the boys sit down. Turning to the clan heads Mikoto said, "I thank you all for coming here tonight to see two of my boys off. During dinner if you have any questions for Naru-kun please go ahead and ask. Kids as always you will have time to talk after the meal." Seeing everyone nod Mikoto sat down.

Soon the food that everyone had grown to love was being brought out. After a few minutes of dinner time silence it was broken by Shikaku Nara.

"I might as well ask my question first, what is your current shogi record with my son Naruto."

Naruto wanted to slap his face, of all the things that could be asked.

"I am currently winning with 100 wins. Shikamaru has caught up very quickly and has 99 wins himself."

"Very well who's next?" Shikaku turned to his fellow clan heads.

Surprisingly Hiashi who was present for once went next.

"Naruto-san my daughter informs me that you are very gifted with taijustsu. I was wondering if you would share with us what your favourite stance is."

Naruto wasn't really surprised; a clan that specialised in one of the most deadly forms of taijustsu was bound to ask this question.

"Well my favourite style is actually the one I have created. It is called **_Kage Kitsune_**. I don't want to reveal too much but when completed I assure you it will pack the same amount of punch as the **_Juken_**."

Hiashi was surprised with the blonde's declaration but let it slide. Looking around he noticed the Haruno girls looked like they had a question. Motioning for them to go, Mebuki took her turn.

"Naruto-kun I was wondering how smart you actually are. Sakura say's that all you do is sleep during class, yet when she has trouble you are the first person she asks for help."

Naruto mentally smirked and thanked Itachi for this training.

"During part of my training I spent some time and learned all 5 years worth of academy material. Outside of subject I have studied immensely I am probably as smart as your daughter, Mebuki-sama."

Shocked that the kid learned so fast she was dumbstruck. The Aburame seeing this was going nowhere took their turn.

"Naruto-san what summoning contract do you want to sign in the future?"

Naruto didn't even bat an eyelash at that question.

"I will summon the toad contract like my father."

As happy as Aburame's ever got, the Akimichi were allowed to go next.

"How do you eat so much? Even though you are so small."

Naruto was not surprised but not happy with being called small. Being careful to avoid calling them fat Naruto responded.

"First thing I am not really that small Choza-sama. Second as much as I would like to answer you I have always ate this much."

Disgruntled with not getting a body reduction genjutsu or something Choza allowed the Yamanaka to go.

"Almost thought I wouldn't be able to go. Naruto I have heard from Ino numerous times about this thing she keeps calling your way of the ninja. Now before you leave the village I just want to know straight from yourself what your way of the ninja is."

"My way of the ninja is my dedication to protect those that are special to me. I am not becoming strong to protect a village that tried to kill me when I was four. Everyone here in this room is considered a special person to me. They have got to know me, the real me that the civilians of Konoha seem so bent on destroying. To protect all my friends may seem like a huge burden but it really isn't. When you are going through tough times it is the friend's duty to share that stress and help the other prosper. I will gladly go through hell and back to save anyone of you. Whether it is becoming part demon to losing my vision I will do what is necessary because that is my way of the ninja."

**"Remember that last line you said kit…"**

Everyone was stunned after hearing that. Naruto a 7 year old kid was ready to fight in a life and death situation at any given moment for his friends. Mikoto sensing that everyone wouldn't recover from their stupor anytime soon sent all the kids outside.

Akimichi BBQ – Outside

After they got situated outside Naruto could see that Hinata, Ino, and Sakura looked kind of sad. For some reason Naruto felt his heart rate quicken and then his chest started to hurt. Not wanting to see them be sad anymore Naruto pulled them away from the others.

"What is it Naruto-kun?" the three kunoichi asked.

"Well you three looked sad so I thought that we could make a promise."

"What kind of promise?" Ino was getting slightly exited thinking about the gifts he could get them.

"Well how about when I get back we go to the Hokage monument for lunch. That would allow us to talk before I have to start my really intense training again."

"L-like a d-date?" Hinata stuttered out.

Before Naruto could protest Ino and Sakura beat him to it. Standing up the two girls high fived each other and yelled, "Naruto-kun is taking us out on a date, shannaro!"

Not wanting to upset his friends again Naruto just conceited.

"Yes like a date…"

Before Ino could ask if Naruto was planning on buying them gifts when he was gone, their parents told them it was time to go as it was getting late. Saying their goodbyes Naruto couldn't help but have a wave of nostalgia wash over him before he turned and left with his family.

* * *

Random Street in Konoha

As they were walking home Naruto couldn't help but remember a conversation he had with Mikoto earlier in the year.

"Hey kaasan can you show me where the Namikaze mansion is now. It is the end of the year."

_"This couldn't possibly hurt anything." _Turning to face her eldest she said, "Itachi please take Sasuke home I will be showing Naruto his mansion."

"Ok kaasan."

"Oi wait, niisan has a mansion?"

Naruto for his part just smirked and walked away with his kaasan. He couldn't help but silently think, _"One up that otouto."_

* * *

Forest Behind Hokage Monument

After walking through the forest for about half an hour Naruto found himself starring up at two of the largest gates he had ever seen. They were littered with seals and just beyond that was the mansion. It wasn't as big as the others but Naruto didn't care. He found it odd that there was no fence or wall enclosing the property but decided he would ask later. As Naruto was thinking this he could hear his kaasan's voice in the background.

"…this is it Naru-kun. We will probably have to come back later because the seals are too complicated. No one has ever been able to get into this place since the fourth died. They say that if you even touch the projection field cast by the seals you will… NARUTO!"

That last part got his attention. Turning to see Mikoto Naruto noticed she had a look of fear and astonishment.

"What's wrong kaasan?"

"Naruto how did you get in there?"

"What do you mean kaasan? I just walked up here silly."

"Naruto nobody has been able to get into your estate since your father died because of the seals."

"Maybe they are getting old because I got in just fine." Looking closer he noticed everything was fine and a sign that said Namikaze or Uzumaki blood seal. "Since I don't think you can get I will meet you at home."

"You better not stay here past your curfew mister."

"Kaasan, don't worry. You know you can trust me."

"Fine but don't disappoint me Naru-kun."

With that Mikoto left her blonde son in his home. She couldn't help but feel that something very bad was going to happen. After Mikoto left Naruto ran straight to his house and almost barreled down the door. He was so excited to finally, maybe be able to find out more on his parents. Pushing open the door Naruto was greeted to the sight of a house that looked like it was cleaned seconds before he got there. Feeling slightly on edge Naruto subconsciously went towards the kitchen. When he got there he saw three notes lying on the table. Each one had a distinctive title and they read; Minato to Naruto, Kushina to Naruto and Kyuubi.

**"Ohh this isn't going to end well"** the Kyuubi thought to itself as it saw what Naruto was reading.

Not wanting to waste his already limited time Naruto opened the letters that were addressed to him by his parents. Starting with the one by his father he read it out loud.

"Dear son, I see you finally got around to checking out your folks place. You must be jonin by now or 18. If you aren't I hope everything is all right with that old fart we call a hokage, I told him to hold out with telling you your heritage until you were strong enough. Although that shouldn't be a problem because you are my son after all. I uhh- want you to know how much you meant to me. There wasn't a moment of the day me or Kushina weren't happy when you were around. Enclosed in a storage scroll at the bottom contains the technique to mastering **_Rasengan _**and my whole book pertaining to the seals needed to use **_Hiraishin_**. I know these two things are nothing compared to the horrible burden I have placed on you, but please know that I will always believe I you. Sincerely Minato Namikaze."

Naruto let a single tear fall down his cheek.

"You could never place a burden on my head father. Your enemies are nothing now that I wear your name. Your techniques are just a bonus."

With that Naruto pocketed his father's scrolls and opened his mother's letter.

"Dear Naruto, how are you doing? Have you found someone special in your life yet? And not the friend special, the more than a friend special. Since I can assume you are reading this you know about are heritage right? I am so sorry Naruto but that was why you were given such a big burden. It will be explained in more detail in the next scroll. Naruto I want you to know that even if I can't be there with you now I will kick the shinigami's ass until he lets me see you from wherever I am. I loved you dearly and nothing can change that. Your father gave you two of his techniques so I thought I would tell you a little about our hidden bloodline. First when you awaken it, which you will because you are my son, the Uzumaki swirl will become tattooed on your chest. Not many people know about this for obvious reasons because I was the only one alive for 3 generations to have it. Love Kushina Uzumaki. P.S If you ever meet a man named Jiraiya kick his ass. Don't fight him straight up just push him out of the bushes. You will understand what that means when you meet him. If he gets angry just say Kushina would be angry if you hit her son."

Naruto couldn't help but smirk.

"You are not even alive yet you still manage to give me the best advice of my life and intrude in to personal matters, you really were the best kaasan."

Naruto was about to leave when he realised there was still another letter. This one was simply named Kyuubi. Naruto remembered his parents referring to a burden but what could it be? Putting that thought away Naruto's curiosity about the giant kitsune got him. Opening up the letter this is what it read.

"Oct 10th. Naruto this was the day of your birth and the day of the Kyuubi attack. But unlike the scriptures and books say, Minato did not kill the nine tailed kitsune. For the Kyuubi is a being of chakra. They can only be sealed, not destroyed. With that said do you understand where this is going? The day you were born your father transferred the Kyuubi to you after it escaped from your mother the previous jinchuuriki. That word should become familiar to you because that is what you are now. The power of human sacrifice. Never forget that for the Kyuubi was sealed into you by your father at the cost of his life. About now you should hear the kyuubi's voice talking to you. Do not trust this…"

Naruto never got to finish because he was forcefully dragged into his mindscape following a resounding roar.

**"ENOUGH"**

* * *

Mindscape

Naruto found himself in a long dark hallway littered with pipes. Some were blue and some were red, they all seemed to branch out and head down different paths. Naruto wasn't sure what way to go, and then he heard the voice.

**"Come, it is about time we talk face to face."**

So Naruto cautiously walked forward following the voice that beckoned him. After walking for a minute or so Naruto found himself in an almost pitch black room. The ceiling extended so high you couldn't see the top. At the one corner of the room there was a giant cage. Seeing no one else in the room he wondered who it was that called him. Walking towards the cage Naruto suddenly heard.

**"That's close enough kit."**

"Who's there? Is that you conscience? I was reading a letter in my house about the demon fox that killed my parents then I was dragged in here… It said something about my mother being a jinchuuriki and then the fox was… sealed in me. That explains why the villagers hate me… stupid idiots I am human the demon was sealed in me. The last thing I read was something about the fox's voice… it said it would start to talk to me."

Suddenly Naruto's eyes widened in shock. He finally understood what the voice was. It wasn't his conscience it was the Kyuubi trying to take over him.

The Kyuubi for its part was getting frustrated with Naruto's ignorance. He should at least remember the tablet they found at the Uchiha's. It seemed the Kyuubi was going to have to pull all the stops out to get the kid to listen. Stepping forward to the front of the cage so Naruto could see it the Kyuubi began to speak.

**"That is right kit. I am the Kyuubi no kitsune and your mother was my previous host. Before you go off and tell me I am a demon like everyone else do you not remember the statue we found at the Uchiha estate?"**

Thinking back Naruto remembered the statue saying something about Hanyo and how the tailed beasts were not always bad. They got their horrible reputations from some terrible men.

**"I see you do remember it. I was not planning on confronting you until you were done your training with the Uchiha boy but those letters you found spoiled that. I can see you do not trust me because of the incident with Konoha but please let me explain."**

"Please explain. I will judge if my father and mothers lives were worth the waste over you."

The Kyuubi was hurt. The kid was already so far into hating it; it would take the whole story to convince him.

**"Before I begin is it alright for me to change in to my real from. This bulky one pisses me off and it really is just for intimidation."**

"Whatever makes you happy?"

The Kyuubi mentally smirked it hadn't got to have this much fun in a while. After Naruto gave the giant kitsune the go ahead it was enveloped in a huge plume of red smoke. Slowly the smoke started to phase out and Naruto could see… a human shape? As the smoke continued to dissipate Naruto noticed the body looked feminine, but still the smoke continued to fall. When it finally cleared away Naruto's eyes went as wide as ramen bowls. There standing in front of him was a woman, a beautiful one at that, standing in a traditional kimono. The kimono itself was red with little foxes running around, it showed her figure off enough for men to wonder but was elegant enough to keep her modesty. She was about Naruto's height and had long silky red hair. Her eyes were ruby red and seemed to sparkle with the amount of light they had. Her pupils were slit and she had six whisker marks on her face like Naruto. On the top of her head were two fox ears and behind her were 9 swishing fox tails. Naruto was stunned and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't formulate words, or thoughts for that matter. The Kyuubi for her part could see Naruto wasn't going to say anything any time soon so she just started with her story.

**"Before you ask this is my real form and now that you have seen it please call me Kurama because that is my given name. To start from the beginning everything that you read on the tablet that day was true. The only evil that ever possessed any of the tailed beasts in the beginning was being born from the king of hell itself. But people will be people and fear what they do not know. With that they spread rumors about us being evil and then they tried to kill us. This started a cycle of war and hate that exist still to this day. When I attacked Konoha it wasn't really me. I was forcefully removed from your mother by a man named Madara. Yes the same one that had the statue. He then used me in my enraged state to attack Konoha from the sidelines. The only way to seal me was to use a forbidden technique that causes the user to forfeit their life in the process. Naruto for what it's worth," Kurama's face turned to one filled with sorrow. "I'm sorry that I couldn't control myself better. I'm the reason your parents are dead and if you hate me I understand. Sometimes I wish it wasn't me who was chosen to become the Kyuubi. You and your family would be better off if I was dead."**

Naruto for his part was shocked at the whole story. But when he saw the woman in front of him get sad he couldn't help himself. Something about seeing a beautiful woman sad and for reason out of her control made Naruto's heart break. Mustering up all the courage he had.

"Kurama calm down. How is any of this your fault? That Madara bastard who is now also my relative sadly caused you to do this. I am also sure that my kaasan saw the same thing I see in you now, a very good person who was been hated for way too long. I have a lot to think about but first we should inform my friends. But I have some questions and stipulations to our new set up. Would you like to hear them?"

**"Yes please."**

"First thing is how do I show my friends that I am the jinchuuriki of you."

**"When you channel chakra the seal your father placed on your stomach will appear. All you have to do is create a clone and your friends will see it."**

"Ok. Two; now that I know who you are I want you to stay in that form always and I will try to have a conversation with you daily. That way we can get to know each other better for who we really are." 

**"Sounds good. Naruto before you go as a thank you after you become a chunin I will take over your training for three years. Don't worry about the how just know that when you come back you will be pretty set for the rest of your life."**

"Thank you Kurama, I will talk to you again later."

Naruto slowly faded away from his mindscape.

* * *

Back Inside the Mansion

When Naruto woke up he realised time didn't seem to move when he was forcefully pulled into his mind. Knowing he still he about an hour before he had to go back to the estate Naruto pushed all his fears down about being rejected by his friends because of the demon and went to all the clan households and told themabout his burden. He told them that if they wanted to see him off he would be at the gates of Konoha early in the morning. Never waiting for their response Naruto quickly made his way home. He immediately told his kaasan goodnight and went to sleep. He figured tomorrow would be a very stressful day.

* * *

The Next Morning

"Yo Baka-nii get up its time you left with our cool brother."

Naruto just groaned to himself, did he really sleep in that long.

**"Yes you did now hurry up."**

_"Good to know you're helping my otouto too."_

Getting up Naruto quickly got dressed and grabbed all his stuff. He also grabbed a few things Itachi didn't know about like; the **_Rasengan, Hiraishin, _**and Madara scrolls he found. Rushing to the kitchen he saw Itachi leaving and realised he missed breakfast. Sighing to himself Naruto turned to the other members of his family.

"Don't miss me too much kaasan, otouto."

"Be safe Naru-kun."

"You better just get strong niisan or I will kick your ass when you get back."

"Love you both," with that Naruto turned and sprinted to catch up to Itachi who was surely near the gates by now.

* * *

Konoha Gates

Naruto was stunned. There in front of him and his sensei were a huge crowd of people. But it wasn't an angry mob it was all of Naruto's friends and their parents. Even his jiisan was there. Hiruzen was the first to step forward and address Naruto.

"Naruto I am so sorry for hiding all of these things from you. While I would like to apologise to you more I believe a few of your friends have something to say to you that you need to hear before you leave."

After Hiruzen said that Ino, Hinata, and Sakura stepped forward from the crowd and walked up to Naruto.

Naruto was expecting Ino or Sakura to talk to him but it ended up being Hinata.

"N-Naruto-kun how could you expect a-any of us to hate you. W-we all love you for who you are. Y-you are our best friend and nothing c-can change that. D-demon or not you are just you and w-we swore to protect you because that i-is our way of the ninja."

Naruto could feel the tears falling down his face. Not even caring to brush them away he felt his niisan put his hand on his shoulder. Building up all his courage Naruto addressed all his friends.

"Thank you for accepting me for me and even though I have so many burdens you would still considers yourself my friends. I promise when my training is done I will protect you all no matter what!"

With that Naruto continued through the crowd and exited through the huge gates in front of them. When Naruto passed through him a huge grin crept on to his face.

_"This is going to be a few interesting years, isn't it Kurama?"_

**"It sure is kit."**

* * *

**Jutsu:**

**Rasengan: **Spiralling Sphere

**Hiraishin: **Flying Thunder God

**Kage Kitsune: **Shadow Fox

**Juken: **Gentle Fist

A/N: Holy cow that was a long chapter. 5000 words approximately. So what did you think? Is Sasuke's new personality better. Still not completely open in public but still it is a start. The Kyuubi… I mean Kurama's gender has finally been revealed. Two years of mystery coming up. What do you think Naruto will learn? Well it will be interesting none the less. As always please don't flame me if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	8. Chapter 8 - Shinobi have Secrets

Crimson Fracture

**Bold** – Kyuubi talking

**Bold and Underline** – Kyuubi thinking

_Italics_ – Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics_** – Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 8 – Shinobi have Secrets

The Land of Fire – Forest

Naruto and Itachi had been walking for a couple of hours now and both of them hadn't spoken a word. Naruto had been silently thinking about all the cool things his niisan could teach him. They were going to be outside the village for two years and his training was still a mystery. Itachi could see Naruto was much exited about his training but he had planned to do something before they began. Itachi noticed that lately Naruto had been very secretive. At first Itachi suspected that it was the Kyuubi that was on Naruto's mind constantly but after Naruto told everyone about it he didn't change. Suspecting that Naruto wasn't telling them everything he knew about the Kyuubi Itachi made a mental not to confront the blonde about that and a few other things he found out about. Noticing that they were nearing the town they were going to stay at for the night Itachi turned to Naruto.

"Naruto-kun before we reach our destination there are some things we have to talk about."

"Like what sensei?"

"Well I was going to inform you of the town we will be staying at tonight. Also if you can recall I said that I was going to study the background of the Namikaze clan. There have been some interesting discoveries to say the least. The last thing we will talk about is some secrets I know you have been keeping from everyone and as your sensei I need to know what they are. We can make a blood oath or something if you do not trust me to keep your secrets with my life."

Naruto mentally berated himself. He would have to become better at hiding things in the future or he would have to tell everyone his secrets always. Deciding it would be too much work to lie he just conceited.

"The blood oath won't be necessary sensei. Please continue and tell me about the town and my father's clan. Then I will tell you what you want to know."

"We will be staying at a town a few minutes north of here. It is called Azure. They are known for their festival of 'Blossoms.' It occurs in late March to mid April. During this time all the Sakura trees around the area bloom. People from around the elemental nations come to observe because it is renowned for being very beautiful. You should take your girlfriends here."

"Hey niisan. I told you before that they are just girls and my friends!" Naruto shouted back, but he couldn't help the next thought, it just slipped out. _"I might take one of them here one day. Just me and whoever I take having a good time… alone"_

"Whatever Naruto. Now searching through the grand Uchiha Library which you did not have access to during your training, I looked through some of the history books pertaining to the Namikaze. While there was no specific points or leads, in every account the Namikaze were mentioned it seemed they were very close to the Uchiha. Now I found that weird since my father never once told me the Uchiha had contact let alone relations with the clan. Going back as far as I could in the history books I finally found a lead to your clan and you will never guess what it is."

"What is it, what is it? Did they get killed off like my kaasan's clan?"

"At one point they did but that wasn't the interesting point. The Namikaze are actually distant blood relatives of the Uchiha. During the founding years of Konoha a small platoon of untrained Uchiha disappeared. They were assumed dead at the time but years later Shinobi under the name Namikaze were slowly starting to appear. They didn't have the sharingan but they possessed unnatural reflexes, speed, and intelligence. They were on par to a two tomeo sharingan with their natural instincts. Thinking this was odd the elders of the Uchiha sent spies. They found the Uchiha who left were still alive had started this new clan and became furious. They could not be allowed to live for they could spread the weakness of their bloodline, so the elders sent out a squad of ANBU rank Uchiha who mastered the sharingan to hunt and kill every single one. When the Shinobi came back and reported the job was done and all of them were dead the elders decided to erase all evidence that the Namikaze existed. But it seems that one family, which would have been your fathers ancestors escaped. Living in hiding for several decades they finally resurfaced when the Uchiha forgot about the incident." Itachi paused for Naruto to take it all in.

"So I was actually related to you the whole time niisan that is amazing. Did you find anything else out?"

"During the studies I found a hidden technique created by the runaway Uchiha and I must say it is pretty interesting. The reason the Namikaze didn't have the sharingan was because of the inherent abilities of the people who accepted them. They were already above average and the strain the sharingan would put on their systems would kill them off. But with that being said the Namikaze created a hidden technique that would hide or should I say mask their Uchiha DNA. But with all jutsu there is always a way to reverse a seal. Naruto do you understand what I mean?"

"Not really… Did you find a way to awaken my latent DNA?"

"You could say that."

When Naruto heard that his mind went crazy.

"So niisan does that mean that I could get the sharingan like you and Sasuke?"

"Unfortunately no." Naruto frowned at that.

"And why not?"

"That part of your DNA was lost when the seal was place on you initially. You already posses your father's natural skill at learning things quickly. So really the only thing this will do is increase your aptitude for genjutsu and alter some minor physical attributes."

Naruto was a little sad about not getting his brothers eyes but he figured it would be cool to become more like his family.

"Can you perform the technique niisan?"

"That was actually one of the reasons we stopped here. To answer your question; yes I can perform the technique. The reason I stopped here was because you need a lot of space for the jutsu and I read it tends to be slightly painful, normally ending with the person becoming unconscious. Hearing that do you still want to proceed with it?"

"Yes."

"The changes that will occur from this won't be instantaneous. You will see the changes eventually but do not expect to wake up tomorrow and look like me. With that out of the way let's begin"

Pulling Naruto to the middle of a clearing Itachi had the blonde sit down and take off his shirt. After that was done Itachi pulled out a container of ink and got to work. He started out by drawing a large circle around Naruto. Moving his way towards the center Itachi then drew two smaller circles; one at the top right and one at the bottom left. They were equally spaced out and had Naruto as their center point. Itachi then proceeded to paint the symbol for the Uchiha clan in one of the smaller circles and the Namikaze in the other. Next Itachi drew a line connecting from Naruto to each of the symbols. Moving on Itachi started the final two steps. First he had to take a small amount of Naruto's blood and draw a small open ended circle on Naruto's palms. Itachi explained they were there to represent how the two clans DNA were together but not whole. Lastly Itachi had to use his own blood. Stepping out of the circles Itachi cut across his palm and let a drop of blood fall in to the designated area. As soon as the drop hit the circle instantly bled through to the colour red and Itachi began the hand seals. Going through the designated 52 Itachi ended on a boar seal and called out the techniques name while slamming his hands on the ground.

"**_Tamashi Fukugen no Jutsu_**."

Immediately a bright red light shot up into the sky. After the light subsided the circle started to swirl and enclose on Naruto. Apparently that was when the pain started because Itachi had to cover his ears.

"AHHHHHHHHH!"

As the circle slowly got smaller and smaller a faint blue light began to enclose around Naruto. The light gained a foggy attribute and Itachi could no longer see Naruto. When the circle finally reached Naruto the two smaller circles that had the clan symbols in them molded into one. Slowly they lifted off the ground and entered the blue sphere. Itachi could hear Naruto panting on the inside and was happy to know his brother had survived the worst. Remembering what was about to happen Itachi took cover behind a tree. No sooner had he gotten behind the tree the blue ball of light exploded. The winds that resulted from this were gale force and were tearing the forest to shreds. When the gusts finally stopped Itachi came out from his cover and saw the whole area within a mile radius was simply gone and in the middle of the wreckage was Naruto. Sighing to himself Itachi went over to Naruto and picked him up. Looking at his hands the blood circles were complete and had the Namikaze and Uchiha symbols in each. They were slowly fading away, probably by tomorrow they would be gone. Itachi then started to walk towards Azure because the kid wasn't going to wake up anytime soon.

* * *

Next Day – Inn within Azure's Districts

"Uhhh, I feel like Anko got a hold of me after I called her Anko-chan." Naruto groaned to himself or at least he thought he did.

"So that was why Anko wanted to kill you a while back."

Turning quickly Naruto saw Itachi heard him and he had no way out of this. Remembering what happened yesterday Naruto had to ask.

"Was the jutsu completed? Did everything go right?"

"Yes, everything went right according to the jutsu scroll."

"Itachi I am still a little tired, can you just explain what my training will be like. I probably won't be ready until tomorrow."

"Only you would be about for one day. This technique was known to cripple jonin for at least a week. Also about your training I was going to explain it to you any way. Later you can go out and explore the village. I know you are tired but your curiosity will get the better of you. Now as you know we will be outside of the village for two years. We have already strengthened your taijutsu and knowledge. You have completed a meaningless year at the academy and through your pranking with Anko you have built up quite the aptitude for stealth. Since I know you continuously added weights to your personal training and kept sharp through your shogi games with the Nara we won't have to backtrack at all. Also now that we have performed the DNA technique you will eventually become very proficient with genjutsu. Genjutsu requires a very good amount of chakra control so that is what we will be focusing on for the next year. This will also give you early practice before the niinjutsu training year. By the end of our time I will make sure you have mid to high chunin levels of control because I personally see you passing me. You may not achieve the ranks at the age I did but you are now way any weaker than I was at your age. Now before I tell you the specifics I seem to remember you telling me yesterday that you would share some of the things that have been weighing down on you. Care to explain all you know on the Kyuubi and how you got into Madara's old study and what you saw that has you so reserved."

Naruto sighed when he heard his brother remembered about yesterday. He was happy to receive all the praise and being compared to his prodigy of a sensei was flattering. Knowing he wasn't getting out of this without telling Itachi, Naruto started.

"Itachi-nii both of these events are linked and I want to you to take what I say for the next few minutes very seriously. No matter how strange they seem, can you agree to that?"

"Yes now please enlighten me Naruto-kun."

**"Kit do not tell him about the scrolls or my true form, they do not need to know that."**

_"Ok fine."_

"It started when I was given my free reign period during my studying year. I went to look for an old medical jutsu book and when I pulled on it the entrance to Madara's room opened. I went in to it and found that statue that sits in the corner. Noticing the sign that only those with sharingan could read it I still looked at the inscriptions because it was cool. When I got to the bottom there was an arrow scratched in it, I followed it to the back and there were symbols that I could read. It said, 'Only the chosen may read my plea. For he will be the savior when I am no longer around. Here in the final moments of my life I leave what needs to be said. Hanyo. Our brethren that we once held so dear that get shunned and killed for their burdens. They are the saviors that hold the chakra that I so faithfully split from the lord of hell and chaos. Their numbers are dwindling and I fear that only the nine tailed could form a pact with a mortal anymore. But what are the chances of that? The actions of a few murderous men have damned the existence of all my kind. May he who carries the burden find the last evidence of my existence and save our world.' After I read that I was a little confused. Skipping ahead to when I met the Kyuubi more happened than what I told you guys. Instead of figuring everything out from the letter like I told you and every one I actually got pulled in to my mind and had a talk face to face with the fox. It confirmed everything was true and ever since then I have been having conversations with it. I must say the Kyuubi is actually a very good person."

**"Thank you kit."**

Itachi was shocked at the story Naruto just told him.

"That is a lot to take in Naruto. I believe you but allow me the day to think it all over. I am satisfied with your answers and I can see how that would weigh some one's mind down. Now before you go I will tell you about your training for the next year. You will start with tree climbing, then move on to water walking with different depths and temperatures, then you will hold a leaf above your head and then if you pass all of them I will have you create your own application. Sounds good?"

"Sounds good niisan. Now if you don't mind I will go explore."

Seeing Itachi motion it was OK to leave Naruto got up and left.

* * *

Street in Azure

Naruto had been walking around for about 3 hours and he honestly loved this town. All the shopkeepers were nice to him and the civilians didn't throw him glares. Getting lost on his thoughts Naruto didn't notice when he turned down a more rundown road. He was soon surrounded by boarded up buildings and was getting a little intimidated. It was so similar to the orphanage he grew up at the bad memories flooded back full force. Just when Naruto was about to turn around he heard the most beautiful music. It was coming from around the corner. The song was haunting and cold but it charmed him and brought out part of his darker personality; his desire. Momentarily controlled Naruto went around the bend to confront the owner of the song. When he turned the corner he saw it was a girl around his age but defiantly a year or two older. She had red hair and was focusing solely on her music. She didn't notice Naruto until he was beside her.

"What do you want?"

"I came to see who was playing the most beautiful music I ever heard."

"Humph. Compliments will get you nowhere with me Blondie. If you have nothing better to do buzz off."

Naruto felt like he was talking with a less foul mouthed Anko. He then felt that side of his personality surfacing and he knew it wasn't going to be too long before he was either friends or fighting with the red head in front of him.

"Scoffing at me like your better won't get you anywhere with me either redhead. Now accept my compliment that your music is the best I have ever heard or I will make you."

"Oh really, well my name is Tayuya and I'm the last person you are ever going to meet because I am going to kill you."

"My name is Naruto and I doubt that because I swore I was going to protect my friends and I won't allow myself to die here."

Both parties jumped back several feet and got ready to fight. This was going to be one of Naruto's most humiliating.

* * *

20 Minutes Later

Tayuya was on lying on the ground with a few cuts and bruises on her face. She was out of breath and doubted that she could stand. But that didn't stop her from smirking because a few feet away Naruto was also on the ground. He wasn't littered with cuts or bruises but he was hurt severely. All through the fight Tayuya had been unable to hit Naruto until she landed the ultimate finisher. She had gotten one good solid kick straight to Naruto's groin. Sitting up so she could see the blonde Tayuya said, "You put up one hell of a fight Naruto."

"T-thanks. J-just give me a few minutes to recover."

"I want to know why you would even bother fighting me. I tried to scare you off but you just stood there and complimented me again. If you weren't trying to get me why did you keep saying those things?"

Sitting up so he could see into her eyes Naruto continued.

"It's because I really meant it Tayuya. I had never heard such a beautiful song in all of my life. It spoke to me and drew out the side of me only one of my friends can bring out. She is a great friend and when I heard your song I had to see who was playing it. Growing up I didn't have many friends so I wanted to see if the person playing could be my friend or at least an acquaintance. Now that you heard that would you like to be my friend?"

"No funny business?"

"No."

"You just want to be my friend?"

"Yes."

Tayuya was stunned. Here in front of her was a kid who much like her just said what he felt. He was honest and caring, plus he didn't just talk to her to try and get her back home. She also silently noted he was kind of cute. He was built pretty well for being so young and the whisker marks on his face were so cool.

"Then I guess we are friends Ruto."

"Well that's go-, wait what did you just call me?"

"I called you Ruto, we are friends and nicknames are cool. You will now think of one for me."

"Uhhh OK. Let me think about it….." Naruto was cut from his thoughts when his stomach starting growling very loudly. "Can it wait till after lunch? I seem to be very hungry."

"Yeah I'll wait for you right here."

"Are you kidding I won't let you stay here alone. You're coming with me."

Naruto quickly grabbed her hand and dragged her to her feet. Before she could formulate any sort of protest Naruto dragged her all the way to the food district. All the way there she could see the crowd glaring at them and thought that she was embarrassing her new and only friend. But when she looked down at Naruto he was simply ignoring it. Tayuya vowed to ask him about that after they settled down for lunch.

* * *

Clearing Just Outside of Azure

Naruto had bought both of them a small lunch and then led Tayuya outside so they could eat in peace. He recognized the stares the villagers were giving his new friend and he didn't like it. After the meal ended they sat in silence. Both parties having something to say but none wanting to start. It ended up Naruto starting their conversation again.

"I thought of one."

"One what Ruto?"

"A nickname for you."

"What is it?"

"Your nickname will be Yuya."

"Yuya…" She purred the name out, "It is perfect!"

"Thank you. Now if you don't mind could you tell me why the villagers were glaring at you in the village so much."

"Uhh, it was all a huge misunderstanding. You remember how I was acting towards you when we first met?" Seeing Naruto nod she continued, "Well a year before that some older man tried to pick me up. He complimented me on my music then tried to kiss me. I pushed away and told him I wasn't interested. He took it the wrong way and tried to attack me. He suffered the same fate as you earlier only much worse. I kicked him so hard in the groin he wasn't going to be having kids anymore. When he recovered enough to talk again he told everyone that I attacked him. Since I was an orphan with no friends no one backed me up. Now everyone hates me."

"Yuya… who was that bastard, because I swear if he ever hurts you again I will kill him. You are my friend and if no one will protect you I will. You are a beautiful person who is kind and caring to her friends, even if that is only me. Back home I was an orphan before I met my sensei and made friends. We have all sworn to protect our loved ones so we are becoming Shinobi. I will not protect those who have hated me or my friends. Yuya if you ever get the chance to become a ninja do it. You are one of the strongest people I know and I think you would make a killer Shinobi."

Tayuya's eyes were widening the whole time Naruto was talking. When she realised Naruto considered her one of his loved ones her heart suddenly tried to jump out of her chest. She was so happy, never before had she had a friend, let alone someone who would make her feel like this. Not wanting to ignore her only friend Tayuya said, "Thank you Ruto. That is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me."

Naruto was happy that his friend was. Looking up at the sky he realised that it was getting late in the evening. Between their fight, lunch and talk he would be going soon. Turning to Tayuya he noticed that she seemed to be thinking something over. She was completely oblivious to him and her face was a little flushed. Thinking it was the heat Naruto paid no attention. Tapping his redheaded friend on the shoulder he could see her attention snap back to him.

"Tayuya I have to go. My sensei will kill me during training if I get back too late. I don't know when I will come back here but I am a Shinobi so I will find a way to find you again, don't worry."

With that Naruto stood up and began walking away.

"Ruto… wait."

Slowly turning Naruto was met by the surprise of a lifetime. Tayuya had stood up and gotten behind him. As he was turning she slowly leaned in and kissed him on the lips for a brief second. Naruto was way too stunned to pull back and felt his face getting really red. When Tayuya stepped back Naruto could see her face and she looked no better than him.

"If you tell anyone about that I will kill you. Also don't think that was because I love you. That was just the only way I could repay you today. You are my only friend and mist treasured person in the world. Make sure we meet again or I will hunt you down."

With that Tayuya stormed away and Naruto was dumbstruck. He must have stood there for 20 minutes before he just stumbled back to the inn. The blush on his face never going away.

* * *

Inn

Itachi had gotten back several hours ago and was waiting for Naruto. When he felt his blonde brother arrive at the inn Itachi prepared to talk about the Kyuubi again, but when Naruto entered the room Itachi thought of several more interesting things to talk about. The young kids face was so red he looked like a tomato.

"What hap-."

"Don't ask I'm going to sleep."

"Fine no need to be pushy."

With that Itachi let his brother go to sleep but vowed to pester him until he figured out what had happened that afternoon.

* * *

**Jutsu:**

**Tamashi Fukugen no Jutsu: **Soul Restoration Technique (original by me for this story)

A/N: First I would like to thank all of the wonderful human beings who have been following/ favourite/ commenting/ reading my story. You are all great and you're keeping this fic alive. To address some comments I have seen popping up lately this story will not be a harem. It will have a definite pairing later with some funny encounters now. But if you guys and gals really want it the second story which I am already planning could be one. Before you ask I will not start writing my second fic until I am dine with this one. I also want to point out that writing Sasuke as a better person overall is so much fun. If people would spend less time bashing they would see he has great potential. One more point Tayuya will have some of her canon personality when she is older but that is very far away. So, what did you think of the soul restoration technique? It won't make him godly but it does give him deeper ties to his family. As always please don't flame me if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	9. Chapter 9 – Massacre and B's?

Crimson Fracture

**Bold** – Kyuubi talking

**Bold and Underline** – Kyuubi thinking

_Italics_ – Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics_** – Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 9 – Massacre and B's?

Time Skip – Land of Fire Forest

_"How did it ever end up like this," _Itachi thought. After their relaxing day in Azure Itachi took Naruto to where they were going to be training. The area was calm and peaceful. It had a few different ponds that were various depths and had a lot of trees. This was perfect for Naruto; it had elements from all his exercises so they would not have to move around. But almost one year later Itachi looked around and almost started to doubt his memory. One of the lakes was just a big crater now; it had no water in it and had been dried up for several months now. All the trees around them had either been slashed so many times they started to die, or all their leaves were gone. Of course the most peculiar sight was the figure of Naruto in the middle of the third pond. He was currently meditating and pushing all the water away from him with his chakra. He was close to the center and had what looked like a little air bubble surrounding him, upon closer inspection one would see that the kid had brought his control up so high he had near perfect external chakra control too. Smiling a little Itachi thought of all the hard work Naruto had to put in to get where he was now.

Flashback

Itachi and Naruto had just arrived at the training ground. Itachi noticed that Naruto was deep in thought and he figured it was probably about why his face was so red. Wanting to get Naruto focused Itachi sighed to himself, he was going to have to make another bet. That would take Naruto's mind off whatever it was on and make him focus solely on training.

"Naruto before you start your training for the year would you like to make a bet?"

The blonde for his part just smiled. Never before has he lost a bet and he wasn't planning on starting anytime soon.

"Sure sensei, that way I can take more of your rewards."

"So full of yourself, you don't even know what I was going to bet. Putting that aside how about this; if you master all three normal chakra control exercises in 6 months or less I will allow you to choose between learning genjutsu for a year or strengthening all your other skills you already possess when this year is over. If you fail you have to find Anko and tell her you have a secret for her. Then when you go to whisper it in her ear you have to kiss her on the cheek and hope to god you don't die. Sound good?"

Naruto was actually scared, all the other bets seemed harmless but if he screwed this one up he might die. Thinking maybe this was too much Naruto suddenly remembered a book her read during his studying year. It pertained to the different ranks of Shinobi, more specifically chunin. If Naruto was thinking straight, chunin were supposed to be leaders and have the guts to face the unknown or hardships head on. Steeling himself Naruto responded.

"Deal."

"Then you better get going because standing there makes more of a pincushion for Anko and less of a student for me."

"OK!"

Turning around Naruto quickly ran to the nearest tree. When he got a few steps away he started to apply chakra just like Itachi had taught him. Thinking it was now or never Naruto took his first few vertical steps. When he got about a quarter of the way up the tree he felt his grip slipping and decided to mark it with a kunai and jump down. Feeling proud Naruto looked back up at the tree and realised he only got up about a fifth. Frowning a little Naruto continued to charge up the tree day in and day out until he got it.

Fast Forward – 2 weeks

_"One down," _Naruto thought. Looking up at the ponds around him Naruto formulated his plan. _"Ok there are three ponds, they are all supposed to have a different temperature and depth. The difficulty of the training goes up from left, being the easiest to right, being the hardest. I might as well start at the left."_

Walking over to the pond Naruto dipped his toe in. The water wasn't cold or hot; he figured that if he wanted to go swimming the water would be perfect. Taking a few deep breaths to calm him, Naruto started to apply chakra to his feet and walk out on the water, only for him to end up face first in the bank on the side of the pond. Quickly getting up he saw Itachi laughing hysterically and realised this was going to be a very frustrating application of training.

Fast Forward – 6 weeks

2 months into the bet Naruto was getting cocky. He had finally mastered the water walking enough that if he was out at sea and his boat sunk he would be able to walk to shore if it was about 1 mile away. While that seemed a little farfetched the blonde had actually mastered water walking just as fast as Itachi himself and had his unnatural chakra reserves. The kid could probably provide chakra like a generator for hours and never get tired. Thinking that the leaf exercise wouldn't be too much harder Naruto walked over to a stray leaf on the ground and laid down. Placing it on his forehead, Naruto slowly started to channel chakra to his head. Ten minutes later when Naruto still didn't make any progress he sat up and was greeted with a massive headache. Not understanding why he couldn't even get it to budge Kurama sent him a little advice.

**"Think about your father's ****_rasengan_**** scroll."**

Naruto was confused at that. He was pretty sure that building a swirling ball of chakra on his head wasn't the purpose. Then it hit him, he wasn't going to be building chakra in to a part of his body like the last two exercises he was going to have to maintain a constant stream of chakra outside his body and keep it there to keep the leaf floating. Sitting back down Naruto placed the leaf on his head and closed his eyes. He was going to have to keep his concentration up because this was going to be one hell of a challenge.

Fast Forward – 15 weeks

Naruto was currently on the ground unconscious from chakra exhaustion. Beside him was Itachi with a huge frown on his face. He just lost another bet and was thinking about what Naruto said before he fell to the ground.

_"He wants to be taught genjutsu. He is confident he can keep his other skills up to par and wants to be taught genjutsu because he wants to show me and our other relatives that you do not need the sharingan to be a master at it. Very interesting."_

Later when Naruto woke up Itachi told him that he would be glad to teach him about genjutsu. But first he would have to finish the year and create his own chakra control exercise. Naruto just smiled and said that he had a few ideas. It was those few ideas that turned the training ground into a wasteland. The first thing Naruto did was summon 1 hundred clones. He had them run and do tree climbing all day. He said that they were continuously running up the trees to find the exact amount of chakra to do anything. Whether it is running, standing still or walking he would get it to a point where he did not have to even think about it. That was what scratched all the tress up and killed them. Next was the event that destroyed the pond. Naruto walked out into the middle of the shallowest pond. He then sat down in a meditative pose. After that he started expelling large amounts of chakra. The only problem was he had never done this before and put a little too much out before he got it under control. The resulting explosion completely destroyed the pond and sent Naruto flying. Before going back to that he decided he needed to perfect external control. In the following weeks Naruto would summon 1 hundred clones and have them doing the leaf exercise, only this time they would hold the leaf at different heights above their heads. When he felt he had enough control Naruto went back to the ponds. Slowly working his chakra out he would increase the amount of water he displaced every day. That was how he got to where he was.

Flash Back End

Cutting himself from his musing Itachi called Naruto over for lunch. Being outside villages for a year made both of them very proficient at collecting food. Yesterday they had caught and smoked several fish, providing them with their meal now. Just as they were about to dig in Itachi noticed one of Konoha's messenger hawks circling above them. Holding out his arm for the animal to land, Itachi thought _"This can't be good." _Taking the note from the bird's talons he noticed that the scroll had the Hokage seal on it. He broke the seal on the letter and silently began reading it to himself.

Naruto for his part watched Itachi the whole time and was slowly becoming frightened. Here, right in front of him, his brother who wasn't afraid of anything, was starting to lose all color in his face. Naruto could see a small tear streak down Itachi's cheek before anger and hate replaced all of his sorrow. But as quickly as all the emotion washed over his brothers face it was replaced by his normal Shinobi façade and Naruto realised that this was very, very serious.

"What did the message say Itachi-nii?"

"…"

"Please tell me Itachi-nii."

"Naruto-kun one week ago… our clan…"

"Our clan… What happened?"

"Our clan… was murdered."

When the words left Itachi's mouth Naruto's world shattered. He was supposed to be getting stronger to protect his loved ones. No one was supposed to die anymore. Yet it seemed whatever family he was a part of would die off. All of the Uzumaki gone, all of the Namikaze gone, most of the Uchiha gone. He would never get to see his kaasan or otouto again.

"N-niisan d-did k-kaasan and Sasuke d-die too?"

"No they are both alive. We have orders from Hokage-sama to go to a hidden location and meet with them for a bit. We can only stay for a little because four Uchiha in the same place will grow too much attention, especially after what just happened. Just stay quiet for now and follow me."

With that Itachi turned and left with Naruto silently following.

* * *

Undisclosed Location – Land of Fire

As soon as Naruto and Itachi got inside the safe house all of Naruto's emotions burst out.

"Kaasan, Sasuke are you OK? Who did this? Why did this happen? I am so sorry…" Starting out with worry Naruto quickly shifted to his old self, the one that blamed his existence for everything. "If I hadn't joined your clan none of this would have happened it's all my f-"

SLAP!

Naruto looked up and met the gaze of his kaasan's. They were blood red, tomeos spinning with tears flowing down her face.

"Naru-kun don't let me ever hear you say this was your fault. I have lost so much of my family already I don't need you to go away too. You along with Itachi and Sasuke are the best things in my life. I will be damned if I let one of my sons take the blame." Pulling Naruto into a hug Mikoto continued "Itachi since you didn't tell Naruto what happened before you arrived please tell him now."

"Naruto-kun as I said earlier last week our clan was murdered. The murderer was none other than our father, Fugaku. Kaasan here was out of the village for a political event and Sasuke was out late training. When Sasuke arrived home he noticed it was way too quiet. Walking up to our estate he noticed members of the family laying in pools of their own blood. Being scared that there was a missing-nin in the village Sasuke went the clan room to look for father and when he got there he saw the bastard slitting the last elders' throats. Slowly backing away he knocked over some books. Fugaku heard the noise and turned towards Sasuke and revealed a type of sharingan that only a few Uchiha were thought to have attained, the Mangekyo sharingan. He then put Sasuke in a very high level genjutsu that made him relive all of the clan being murdered. When that was done he told Sasuke, 'They could have had it all, if they listened to me. But no there were just too many risks with over throwing Konoha. We the great Uchiha could have overcome anything with our bloodline but they chickened out. So son I am here before you to tell you one thing. Hate. That is the power that you seek. It will allow you to get strong and one day kill me because if you can't you will have to live with the knowledge that I killed everything you loved and you couldn't do a damn thing about it.' After that Sasuke passed out and Fugaku fled. The next day kaasan arrived home to the horror. She quickly scanned all the dead for Sasuke then she found him still unconscious beside the dead elders. Telling Hokage-sama immediately he sent her here with Sasuke. Sasuke woke up two days ago and relayed this information back to Konoha as a double S classed secret. We are the only ones that know who killed the clan."

Naruto was stunned, enraged, sad and scared. He never really trusted Fugaku but how could the man murder his whole family? Deciding he wanted to talk to Sasuke a little Naruto asked "Can I talk to Sasuke before we leave?"

"Sure Naruto-kun, but we have to leave in about 3 minutes. We have almost overstayed our visit."

Not wasting anytime Naruto went to the spare room where Sasuke had been sleeping. When he opened the door Naruto was met by a shocking sight. Here the brother who used to be so fun was sitting in bed was looking out the window. There was no life in his eyes and the whites around his onyx eyes were bloodshot. He seemed to be deep in thought and didn't have an ounce of care left in the world. When Naruto walked up and sat on the end of the bed Sasuke turned and looked straight into Naruto's eyes. This allowed him to convey his emotions, the ones that words could not, he was terrified. Lunging forward Sasuke grabbed Naruto and pulled him into a hug.

"Niisan!"

"It's Ok otouto."

After several moments of the hug Naruto broke it off to talk.

"Sasuke are you OK?"

"I-I don't really know. I am doing OK I guess. You, Itachi-nii and kaasan are alive so most of my loved ones are still around. But I am terrified of father. When I sleep he's there, when I hear a noise I think it's him. But what's worse is I want to meet him again. I want to kill him. He hurt all of us and for that he must pay."

"Sasuke do you want to kill him because of what he said?"

"Not really, I do hate him but I will not seek out the power of it to kill father. I won't abandon my loved ones but now they only consist of you, Itachi and kaasan. Your friends that you introduced me to are your friends not mine. It will take a very long time before I trust anyone outside the four of us. Do not try to change my view niisan, I will get strong so I can kill father for the crimes he has committed."

"Sasuke I will never stop you from following your dreams but what about our friends?"

"Naruto right now I cannot trust them. I will distance myself from them at the academy and keep as little contact as I can. I know they are your friends so I will not be rude, but they will never get to see the loving side of me again. That is only for our family and that is final."

Naruto wasn't happy with his brother's response but he knew that this was a lot of progress, after your whole family had been killed, in front of you no less. Knowing he would have to be going soon Naruto stood up. He then proceeded to poke Sasuke in the forehead.

"Know that I will always protect you Sasuke. See you in a few years."

With that Naruto went to the front room and left with Itachi. Back in Sasuke's room a lone tear fell and hit the floor.

"Thank you Naruto-nii."

* * *

Near the Border of Yugakure

Naruto and Itachi had been travelling for almost the whole day. It was getting dark and they would have to rest soon. Itachi could see the gates for the town they were going to be stopping at and decided to tell Naruto about it as they walked.

"Naruto-kun we will be stopping at the small village up ahead. It is called Ruby; it is a known Shinobi stop for all villages that are allied or neutral with Konoha. Tomorrow I will go out and gather all the supplies we will need for your training. You will have the day to fine tune your chakra control. After that we will pack up and leave any questions?"

"No."

"Then let's quickly get to the inn."

Arriving at the gates a moment later Naruto took in the sights as they walked to the inn. The town wasn't very big. It seemed that like Shinobi it was very discreet and only had the bare minimum. When they arrived at the inn they quickly got a room and went to sleep without any further conversation. Naruto noted that it was weighing down on Itachi heavily and decided to let him be. Feeling a very familiar tug on his mind Naruto let himself be pulled in to his mindscape. He figured it was about due time to talk to Kurama again.

* * *

Mindscape

Naruto found himself right in front of the large cage and Kurama sitting at the front waiting.

**"Are you OK kit?"**

"Yeah, but I do feel really terrible. All the families I am a part of die off and it seems that this one is no different. I was really angry at Fugaku earlier but thanks to your previous tests on anger and desire I could control myself. But this makes me feel so weak. My friends need me and I can't do anything. Is there not a way for me to increase my training?"

**"Well there is something, but it will only help you with theoretical applications of things."**

"What is it and what do you mean."

**"The training is a lost art which you mortals now call dreams. I can pull you in here at night and let you practice and practice jutsu and fighting. You will wake up in the morning with all the knowledge of how to perform the styles and techniques but you will have no physical gain. For example; in your mind you could work on using the ****_Shunshin_**** but outside you would not be gaining any of the strength gained from learning it. To counteract this you have to increase your physical workouts tremendously. It would almost be half of Maito Gai's full regiment subtract the hand walking. Do you still wish to do this?"**

"Yes. When can we start?"

**"Tomorrow."**

"I'll see you then."

With that Naruto slipped in to an actual dream and had fun thinking about all of the new training he would be able to do.

* * *

Next Morning

Naruto woke up and found a note stuck to his forehead. Looking around he noticed Itachi wasn't there and decided that it must be from him. Removing it from his brow the note read, "Meet me back here tonight. –Itachi" Crumpling it up Naruto got dressed and went outside. He noticed it was pretty early in the morning, even for Shinobi, so he decided it was probably best to train now so no one would ask questions later. Finding a small clearing just outside the village Naruto sat down and began concentrating his chakra. He had a perfect ring of chakra held around him and if he was in a pond there would be no water underneath him either. Naruto had been holding it for about half an hour before he got interrupted. Opening his eyes Naruto saw two people with Kumo forehead protectors headed his way. There was a man and a woman. The man was a bigger man with glasses and was looking straight at Naruto. The woman had long blonde hair and seemed to be trying to convince the other to stop going towards Naruto. When they arrived the woman was out of breath and the man was looking at Naruto funny.

"Can I help you two with anything?"

"See, he doesn't even notice. Can we please go?" That was the woman.

"Of course he doesn't know ~ we haven't even started the show!" That was the man

"Ummm," Naruto found the pair slightly odd. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. What are your names?"

"Nii Yugito."

"Kid your intro was weak and you should know who I am. I am the eight tailed jinchuuriki Killer Bee. From what I can tell you are one of us as well."

"Wait Yugito-san is one too."

"Yes Naruto-san I am a jinchuuriki too and you just admitted to being one as well."

_"Damn I slipped up. What should I do Kurama?"_

**"They have no ill intentions and I can sense that they are both on good terms with my brother and sister. Re-introduce yourself with your full name and hear them out. See if they can help you at all."**

"Yes you are right Yugito-san, B-san. Now that you caught me let me give you my full name. I am the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no kitsune and my name is Naruto Namikaze Uzumaki Uchiha."

Yugito was confused, how this kid could be from so many clans. Killer B was exited after he heard Namikaze. It had been many years ago when B had met Minato Namikaze the fourth hokage of Konoha and B had a deep amount of respect for the man.

"Ya fool ya fool, did you say Namikaze? Was Minato Namikaze your father?"

"Yes my father was Minato. How do you know him bro?" Naruto didn't even realise his words kind of rhymed. He also didn't realise he just called this man bro.

"I like your style kid." B said as he extended his arm forward, his hand in a fist. "Yo."

"What's this for?"

"We start with fist pumps before we continue talking."

Never doing this before Naruto lifted his arm the same way B did and fist pumped.

Yugito who had gotten bored with the conversation just left. She knew B wouldn't disregard the mission his brother sent them on so he could be trusted alone, hopefully. She knew if he told the kid anything and made a promise it was game over and they were probably going to have to let him do what he said.

"Yeah I knew your father kid. He was a huge inspiration to me when I was younger. We met under some unpleasant circumstances but we got past that. So what is it like in Konoha, you are the son of the fourth."

"B-san nobody knew about that. They just thought that I was the demon that was sealed in my stomach. They never gave me a chance and tried to kill me. I have a few friends and family but that is all. Even at the academy some of the other teachers tried to sabotage me. That is why I am outside the village with my brother to train."

B was stunned. The kid was exactly like him. The villagers hated him at first, the only place he was trained fairly was with his brother, and if his demon chakra was any indication he was on good terms with his tailed beast. The flow of the demonic chakra was almost as smooth as his and in a few years the kid would probably be able to surpass him. Knowing it was almost time to go B decided to pay his debts to the fourth Hokage.

"Kid if you ever want to learn kenjutsu come up to lightning. I will be more than happy to help you out with that and as a fellow jinchuuriki I can help you with using your partner's power. Now as cool as it was meeting you I have to go ya fool ya fool."

With that B turned and left hoping he wasn't going to be too late. Naruto for his part was very happy. He was just offered training in kenjutsu, one of the only areas that Itachi had to find him extra aid in and it was from a fellow jinchuuriki too. Turning back towards the town Naruto went to look for Itachi.

* * *

Later That Night – Inn

Naruto had been waiting in the room all afternoon. After he found out the news he went back and simply waited. When Itachi finally got back he had two storage scrolls with him. Immediately Naruto started talking to him.

"Itachi-nii guess what happened today?"

"What happened, that made you so happy Naruto-kun?"

"I met two jinchuuriki."

"Oh you met tw-, WAIT WHAT?"

"Yeah today I met two jinchuuriki from Kumo and the stronger one, the Kyuubi informed me was the eight tailed, has offered to train me in kenjutsu whenever. He said to stop by in lightning."

Itachi was shocked that Naruto would meet another person like himself so soon. The second strongest of them too. But he was also overjoyed that Naruto had found a kenjutsu aid on his own.

"That's greet Naruto-kun."

"I know. So what did you end up getting for my training in genjutsu?"

"Well I picked up a few things and some extras for later. In the first scroll I have some of the genjutsu items. There are blindfolds for the beginning to see how sharp your senses are when you can't see. I also bought wooden weapons that I will attack you with. That way I will only hurt you instead of killing you when you are still learning. I also got more weights for you because I noticed that the set you are currently wearing does not affect you in the slightest anymore. The new weights should bring you up to about 125 each. In the other scroll I have some elemental affinity cards for when we start your ninjutsu year. They will tell us your nature types. I also bought an item to help you channel elemental chakra when you get far enough."

"You are always thinking ahead niisan. Now if you don't mind I am going to sleep because I feel a little tired."

"Go to sleep Naruto-kun because we are up early tomorrow. We will be starting your training right away."

With that Naruto went to sleep. Or he thought he was but then he noticed himself in front of Kurama. Remembering the conversation he had yesterday.

"What will I be learning today?"

**"I will explain to you the basics of genjutsu for the next 6 hours. This will cut down on your time in the real world and allow you to learn quicker. Genjutsu all started when…"**

It was going to be a very long year for Naruto because he would soon learn that a genjutsu prodigy multiplied by a demon that has lived since genjutsu was first created like to drill you so hard you bleed knowledge and sweat enough to grow crops.

* * *

**Jutsu: **

**Rasengan: **Swirling Sphere

**Shunshin: **Body Flicker Technique

A/N: Before I get to the thoughts section let's talk about some comments… This story will not be a harem. I do not know if you guys know this but the "Clan Restoration Act," was made up on Fanfic for Naruto stories. That being said that cannot be used as a harem excuse for this story. But a commenter made a good point; why have all the girls pine for him if only one ends up with him? I can only answer; have any of you seen the anime "Familiar of Zero." (Disclaimer: I do not own) All the girls like Saito but he only likes one. They are all satisfied with seeing him happy but if the girl even makes the smallest of mistakes they will all be there to fight over him. That is the way this story will go. If you really want a harem let me know and maybe my second story will have one. Trust me good reviews and messages make me and anyone else feel good. Now that that's out of the way… What did you think of this chapter? For some odd reason this chapter took me a really long time to write. I normally plan out my chapter on paper than sit at the computer for like three hours and type it up. It just felt like this one took forever. Is my quality diminishing or is it improving, what do you guys think? I have been trying to check my work over more in depth to eliminate grammatical errors, going as far as asking my friend what he thinks. He was the one who actually got me to start writing my crazy ideas down. If you want to thank that crazy person you can actually check him out on Fanfic. His name is Pen Name is Bloodied-Chains. One note before I am done for the day is the pairing pole on my bio. I check it before I update my story and boy was I surprised today. Ino had been winning with three votes for a while then BOOM out of nowhere Kurenai who had no votes suddenly got six. She is now in the lead with Ino and Tayuya in second. This is very, very interesting. As always please don't flame me if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	10. Chapter 10 - My Elements Part 1

Crimson Fracture

**Bold** – Kyuubi talking

**Bold and Underline** – Kyuubi thinking

_Italics_ – Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics_** – Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 10 – My Elements Part 1

Land of Fire – 1 Year Later

_"I may have created a blonde version of me…" _Itachi thought to himself as he observed Naruto dispelling an A rank genjutsu without any trouble at all. _"He somehow picks up everything I teach him almost instantly, give or take a day and then can use it perfectly. I knew he learns fast but this is getting unreal. I should ask him how he has been learning so fast. He acts so much like me when he is training in a fight he will be terrifying. The knucklehead acts the same when talking or joking around but as soon as training begins his face becomes unreadable. His taijutsu style isn't even perfected yet and it is almost as devastating as the __**Juken**__. I should call him over and start his ninjutsu training."_

"Naruto-kun that is enough for genjutsu, today we will be starting your ninjutsu training."

Turning around Naruto had a huge grin on his face. Between training with Itachi and Kurama he had been learning quite a bit. He knew by what Itachi had been saying that by academy standards he was about mid chunin level in his strength but lacked experience in battle. He hoped that over the next year they would at least run into another Konoha ninja so he could have a spar. Deciding it would be better to start right away Naruto wasted no time in asking his sensei the necessary questions.

"What will we be doing first sensei?"

"If you remember a year ago I got the elemental chakra papers. We will be using those now to determine your natural affinities and maximize our time training. Now come over here and apply some of your chakra to a piece."

Naruto walked up to his sensei and took a piece of the white paper. Holding it firmly he applied a small amount of chakra and watched in amazement as the paper immediately lit on fire. Naruto was about to let go but then the paper turned to dust and crumbled away. Naruto was confused as to why the paper did two actions. Before he could ask Itachi answered the unspoken question.

"It seems you have two natural affinities Naruto-kun. They are; fire and earth. That means when you awaken your Uzumaki bloodline you will also have control over water and lightning. This is actually very convenient for our training. I myself have a natural affinity for fire and that will allow me to go more in depth with your training. Before I explain the details, we will have to talk about the basis of elemental chakra and why it is so important to be a balanced Shinobi. Do you have any questions about you affinities before we start?"

Naruto didn't but it seemed Kurama had something to say.

**"Kit you truly are the best."**

_"Why do you say that?"_

**"You have the fire release, your mother did not. Fire just so happens to be my natural affinity as well. This will allow me to teach you some lost arts that were created before the sharingan. That being said they will not be able to copy them without actually watching and practicing the original hand seals. Although that won't be a problem anymore since you can just cast a genjutsu over your hands to confuse Shinobi without bloodlines."**

Exiting his inner conversation it seemed that Itachi had been waiting.

"No I do not have any questions. I studied them a bit during my training a few years ago so I have some rough ideas of what I will have to do."

"That's good Naruto-kun but I will still explain ninjutsu in its entirety. You have already gained a very high level in what we call shape manipulation. That is when you mold your chakra in order to change its shape and form allowing you to use it for genjutsu or your chakra control exercises. But now we will be starting ninjutsu and so there is another component. You will have to learn and eventually master nature manipulation for each of your elements. This is when you actually change the properties and characteristics of chakra and mold it into an element. Allow me to show you a quick example." Turning to the left where there was a small clearing Itachi began the 7 hand seals required to perform this technique. Ending on a tiger hand seal Itachi called the name of the attack.

**_"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu."_**

The ensuing flames amazed Naruto. He knew from the volume of the flame that this wasn't a very hard technique but it was still very amazing. The flames were very hot and the stream was held at a constant for almost 10 seconds before Itachi dropped it. When Naruto looked where the jutsu had been raging just before the ground was burnt up and blackened. Seeing the flames Naruto couldn't help but voice his opinion.

"Wow sensei will I be able to do that."

Happy that Naruto took a liking to the families preferred jutsu Itachi continued on with the lecture. "Naruto-kun I have no doubt that you will be able to do that. That is actually the first one you will be learning. It is a C rank and I can see you mastering it in about a few weeks. Before I give you the scroll though we have to finish the explanations. To perform fire techniques you have to take a deep breath in as you are finishing up the hand signs. From there you are required to change the nature of the chakra in your lungs to fire. After that you expel the air as you are calling the name of the attack. The flames will mix with the air around you differently depending on the hand seals, which will also alter the power and form. Do you understand?"

"I think so…"

"One last thing before I give you the scroll; I want to stress to you the necessity of having balance. I have been training you in increments in order to give you a background in everything. This will allow you to adapt to situations that Shinobi who specialise in one area like Rock Lee cannot. For example the next time you have a spar against him the second you use a genjutsu it is game over for him. The reason I am telling you this now is because of how much variation can be put into ninjutsu. You will be learning low level techniques now but when you grasp the concept enough I will have you try and create your own. Also remember that the element bends to your will, with some creativity an offensive style could become a defensive one. Now take this scroll and start training. I will check on you at the end of the day to see how much progress you have made."

With that Itachi tossed Naruto the scroll and **_Shunshin_**ed away. Naruto for his part absentmindedly caught the scroll. He was currently having a conversation with Kurama.

_"I have never tried to do elemental manipulation before… do you have any extra advice for me."_

**"Not really your sensei is very good at explaining things. There is not really that much more that can be said. The only advice I have is to read the scroll over a few times by yourself, then make about 10 clones to go through hand seals until you can perform the seven in only a few seconds. After that dispel the clones and try to perform the jutsu. It will take you maybe a week before you can perform the jutsu well and another before you master it. Your flames will not be as hot as your sensei's but that is only because he has mastered many A rank techniques and has almost perfect control over the element. This may seem like a long time for 1 technique to you but remember two things; the more styles you learn in one element the faster you will start to learn the others, and when we get to more complicated techniques you will be able to practice the theory/concept behind them in your mind during our training. Now get going, this is going to be a long couple of weeks."**

_"Ok, Ok… I have to impress Itachi-nii by the end of the day anyway."_

* * *

Several Hours Later

Itachi was currently walking back to where he left Naruto earlier in the day. He had some pocky with himself and he was going to share it with the blonde. The reason for the treat was because Itachi had forgotten to tell Naruto some of the finer details regarding his training. While it was true that he would be taught the elements first hand, Itachi only had one natural affinity. That meant that Naruto would have to find his own way to master his other elements. Also they would spend half a year on each element. That would allow him to get background in both and see how their respective controls were different. First thing first, though they were going to eat the pocky. Stepping out from the trees Itachi could hear Naruto in the distance.

**_"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu._**-" BOOM

Worried that his younger brother might be seriously hurt Itachi sprinted over to where he thought he heard the noise originate.

"Naruto! Are you all ri-…?"

There in the middle of a charred circle of grass sat Naruto. He was still conscious and if anything looked pissed off. His shirt was completely burnt off and his pants had some pretty big singe marks on them. Noticing this Itachi tried not to laugh but he really couldn't help it. Naruto's hair was sticking straight up and was black from soot. He had two rings of soot around his eyes that made him look like a raccoon and to top it off Itachi was pretty sure the young kid's eyebrows were burnt right off.

"Ha! I mean ummm… Naruto-kun are you alright?"

Turning so he could look Itachi in the eyes Naruto almost yelled back. He had been working all day on this stupid jutsu and when he finally got the grasp of it he tried to increase its power. Kurama had warned him that he wasn't ready yet but Naruto decided that he had no time to waste. Over the course of the day he figured out that he would only have half a year on each element and then when his bloodline unlocked he would have to work the rest out on his own. To say Naruto was stressed was a huge understatement if his response was any indicator.

"Sensei if you laugh one more time I will show you how far I have come with this jutsu up close. That way you can feel the experience firsthand. Now I see you have pocky and if you wouldn't mind I would like some. Today has been pretty stressful."

"It's also been pretty hot; wouldn't you say it was scorching?"

Seeing Naruto level him with a death glare Itachi decided that they should just eat the food. Sitting next to the blonde they started eating. A few minutes later Itachi figured that Naruto had cooled off enough to talk again. (Bad pun intended)

"From the looks of the destruction you caused is it safe to assume that you can perform the jutsu safely at low power about half of the time and when you add too much power you end up like you are now."

"That is about right sensei. I also have the hand seals down to about 6 seconds, my fingers currently jam when I try to go faster."

"That is still pretty good though Naruto-kun. Just a bit faster than one seal a second. Now earlier you mentioned that today was stressful. I know for a fact that you love training so you must have figured out the rest of your training details on your own."

"Ya… about half way through the day it dawned on me that we had only a year and I have two elements. That led me to the conclusion that we only have half a year for both. But then I thought about it more and realised that when I awaken my bloodline I will have two more affinities that I will have to train on my own. I figured that meant I would have to rush through each element. You told me at the beginning of the training that I would be able to match your own personal growth sensei. That led me to double my efforts and try harder. So far I have been able to keep up but I am slowly getting behind. You were promoted to jonin last year. That means that I have three years to get to low jonin level in order to beat you and currently I am only low-mid chunin. But even if I get there I realised I wouldn't be happy if I didn't have at least a similar amount of control in ninjutsu. All of that led to a mini breakdown that I had and ended with me adding too much power during training and pretty much exploding."

Itachi was amazed that the kid had analysed it this much. He had thought out all of the variables except for one.

"Naruto while all of what you said is true, do you have so little faith in yourself and all the others who believe in you, that you forget what you have already accomplished. Before we even started training seriously you managed to beat my meditating record that I set when I was 2 years older than yourself. You have also managed to master **_Kage Bunshin_** a jutsu that some jonin can't even perform let alone make hundreds of solid, functioning clones. Also we have several years left, during that time when you have some to yourself train what you feel needed. You will continue to grow even if you don't have long periods of time left out to train."

"Thanks for the compliments but I still feel like I could do better…"

"Naruto you have been learning at a very fast rate recently. I do not know what you have been doing but you should thank whoever gave you the abilities to learn so fast. Right now you are mid chunin but remember so was I. I too had to work hard and look where it got me. Also do not think that I relied on my sharingan. I mastered my bloodline at eight but I only really use it extensively for genjutsu. Now as for today applying the jutsu you were given only hours before is extraordinary. I move my earlier prediction to you mastering it in one week tops. Now I don't want to hear any more self doubt from you today"

Finishing their talk both brothers slipped in to a comfortable silence. Looking up at the sky Naruto realised that it had actually gotten quite late. He could see several constellations lighting up the sky. Looking slightly to the west Naruto felt his eyes glaze over as he looked at a formation of stars that made up a fox. Over the past few weeks when Naruto wanted to talk with Kurama or vise versa they could keep Naruto at about 50% alertness. His reactions would become slower and his vision would be blurred but it allowed him to mentally and physically be two places at once. Feeling the tugging at his mind Naruto figured out that Kurama just wanted to talk.

_"What would you like to talk about Kurama?"_

**"Kit I just want to tell you something. I want you to know that you will always be able to turn to me when you feel troubled. Today when you got anxious about living up to your brother your judgement became clouded. I am not disappointed that you did not listen to me… this time around, but in the future if you disregard me on something big I will stop helping you. You learn extremely fast and have an incredibly powerful background. Never fall into despair or I will never allow you to access my powers. Do I make myself clear?"**

_"Yes."_

**"Good, now go to sleep completely so we can start your mind training. We have to complete this jutsu in a week."**

* * *

One Week Later

**_"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!"_**

1..2..3..4..5..6..7

Seven seconds was the current best. Dropping the jutsu Naruto looked around. The land was charred and burnt to the ground. He knew if he really wanted to increase the power he could but thinking back to some of Kurama's training he didn't. The current power output was enough to do its job, show Itachi that he had mastered it. As for the time Naruto could also hold it longer but seven seconds just seemed right to him. Turning around when he heard clapping Naruto could see that Itachi was quite pleased with his progress. He also saw slight confusion cross his features and sighed to himself. Itachi was going to need an explanation for how he had been learning so quickly. Thankfully everyday when he practiced Itachi left that meant he could lie and say he had clones going over theory and actions almost 24/7. This wasn't really a lie he just trained inside his head every night.

"Before you ask sensei I have clones almost always going over theory and that allows me to pick things up quicker."

"Whatever Naruto-kun you are as impressive as always. Before I give you the rest of the materials for your training promise me you will take the rest of today off."

"Ok… I promise, but I don't really see why."

"It's for your own good trust me. Now with me I have a scroll that was custom made for you. Before you ask the person asked to be kept secret so I will not tell you his name. I will give you a clue though he has the longest hair a hermit ever had. Now back to the scroll. It was made to house several levels of different techniques. After the current weaker jutsu are mastered you will be given the hand seal required to open the next tier. This goes from C-B-A, the reason it stops at A is because when you reach the end you have the choice to be taught one S rank from me or have time to create your own jutsu. The S class jutsu will be a hidden Uchiha style that requires mastery over fire. Which you will have by the time you are done. Now if you don't have any questions could you leave me for a little bit. I have some activities to tend to."

Kind of weirded out by what he thought by activities Naruto just looked at his brother like he was a freak and left.

"Not those kinds of things you dummy!" Itachi shouted after Naruto but he already left. Looking up to the sky he saw the Konoha messenger hawk waiting for him to write his report. Sitting down Itachi pulled out a scroll and some ink and wrote down his message. This is what it said:

Hokage-sama Naruto's training has been going exceptionally well. He has just started his ninjutsu training and I can already tell he will be a master just like his father. I know I said we would only be outside the village for two years but the kid is so wrapped up in training I think he forgot. I would like to request an extra year outside of Konoha. This will allow him to fully concentrate and not be sidetracked. He has not had any more problems with the Kyuubi. That alone should show you his will power. I have one request for you though. If you find any more evidence surrounding the massacre of my clan I would like to hear of it right away."

Rolling up the scroll when he finished Itachi tied the message to the hawks leg and let it fly away. Turning towards their camp Itachi couldn't help to sigh. He hoped that they would get some closure to why Fugaku killed the clan and hopefully it didn't have to do with Naruto.

* * *

Later That Night – Mindscape

Naruto had just gone to sleep and when he opened his eyes he found himself in front of Kurama. But today he frowned to himself. Over the past few weeks he realised that when he was dreaming he could create any scenery he wanted but when he visited Kurama she was always stuck in a dim, dark, room surrounded by an ungodly looking cage. He was curious as to why that always happened so he finally decided to ask.

_"Kurama before we start training today I have a question. Why is it that when I dream I can create anything but when we visit you are stuck in that cage."_

**"Well kit I think it has to do with your subconscious thought of our relationship. When you were first introduced to jinchuuriki you thought that you were my jailor. That in turn created the cell I am in. As for what you can make of the scenery it can almost be anything within the guidelines of the seal that keeps me inside of yourself. Since your father was a seal master the only guideline has to be that the seal on the front of the cage has to be on me or keeping me within an object. That would make sure I cannot hurt you in any permanent way. A good example of this is the one tail. The seal that has been used on him over the centuries has downgraded. He is constantly chained by all fours to the ground and if he moves too much he gets stabbed from every angle. This over the years has made him go insane. He has become so crazed that when thrashing about the blood from the wounds only drives him mad. That in turn keeps the holder awake for hours because he is always trying to escape. The one tail has fallen so far down that he only tries to kill. You are free to change your mindscape however you see fit."**

_"Well here goes nothing."_

Closing his eyes Naruto imagined what he was currently standing in to better the new one he was going to create. Surprisingly when he closed his eyes the exact image came to mind. Wanting to make his mind the best home he could Naruto started imagining. He started with the cage and the one guideline he had to meet. Erasing the cage completely he made the seal mold down into a simple necklace. It had a gold chain that ended in a gold and silver yin and yang symbol. The symbol was placed on the back as a message. Next he decided to get rid of the sewer setting. Expanding the room outward he opened the roof up and gave it an artificial sun and moon. They would rotate at the same intervals just like in the real world. Next he added some gentle rolling hills on one side and a valley on the other. The rolling hills were similar to one of his training grounds. He had a huge open expanse with a small forest for shade. At the edge of this, near the valley he created a small wooden cottage. It would have two rooms, a kitchen, and washroom. It was simple but elegant. Just outback there was a flower patch. Here he placed some red roses because he felt that Kurama would appreciate some flowers that were her favourite colour. Next the valley had a waterfall at the one end. This would provide a calming area to relax and meditate. Wanting a pool to relax in he had a small river from the waterfall flow off to the side. The pool was surrounded by trees and had a beautiful rock cropping just outside. As a final touch Naruto added in some smaller animals like rabbits and birds and some insects to keep the place vibrant and alive. Feeling that he was done Naruto opened his eyes. Seeing Kurama sitting down with her eyes closed Naruto decided to surprise her. Walking as quietly as he could Naruto got behind her and covered her eyes with his hands. When he placed his hands on her he could feel her physically jump.

_"Guess who."_

**"It's obviously you kit."**

_"Well your no fun… I hope you have a better reaction to your new home. Go on and open up your eyes." _As Naruto said this he removed his eyes so Kurama could see. Slowly opening her eyes Kurama was immediately surprised because she had to squint in order to see. Figuring that he had to of made a more outdoor setting Kurama let her eyes adjust. When they finally did she had to blink a couple of times. She wasn't really sure if she could trust herself.

**"You did all of this for me… Naruto?"**

_"Yeah well I figured that you would want to be as comfortable as possible. I hope you like the necklace. I couldn't really picture a better way to give you the seal. I have never given woman jewelry before and I figured that it should represent something. We are both opposites but together we are inseparable. Your power completes me and I live the embodiment of your legacy." _

**"He did all this for me… as a friend. He also referred to me as a woman… not a demon."**

Before she realised what her body was doing Kurama had body tackled Naruto into the ground. She then went on to giving Naruto the second kiss of his life. Old feeling of lust started to surface but Kurama finally got a hold of her emotions and bottled them down. These feeling were fleeting and if the kid got the idea wrong he would never get over what was going to happen in the future. She decided to right her wrong and somewhat explain to Naruto her feelings.

**"Kit I am so sorry. I hope you understand my feelings. No one has shown me that amount of consideration in thousands of years. Your mother was great but she never went to such lengths to make me feel at home. Let's get one thing straight is that we can never be together in that way. I will explain a little more in detail later. Although this lifetime won't allow it I can assure you there will be later chances. Plus you have plenty of great friends and who knows, maybe one of them will become your significant other."**

_"It's all right Kurama. But after that kiss there is one thing that needs to be done."_

Fearing that Naruto might resent her a little Kurama was almost afraid to ask.

**"What is it kit?"**

_"From now on we have to call each other by friendlier names. I am tired of being referred to as kit and I would like to give you a nickname because you are one of my precious people. If you do not want to call me Ruto like Tayuya you can just call me by my name. I would very much appreciate that, Ku-chan."_

Smirking to herself after catching her nickname at the end Kurama decided to respond to the blonde before letting him off for the night for all that he did.

**"Sounds good Naruto. Now I feel you have earned a rest from training for one night. Please take it easy… Actually if you wouldn't mind could we go back to the cottage and could you customize all the furnishing to my tastes."**

_"Sure thing Ku-chan."_

With that Naruto and Kurama walked back to the small cottage and set about furnishing the home that Naruto would get used to meeting Kurama every night before training.

* * *

**Jutsu:**

**Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu:** Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique

**Kage Bunshin: **Shadow Clone

**Shunshin: **Body Flicker Techniqe

A/N: I would like to start with an apology to those who have been waiting for an update. I'm not going to give you some drawn out excuse so here it is. Wicked writers block and a new semester at school. It seems that when I get stuck at writing it gets put behind everything and I forget about it. Anyway… in my story Itachi was promoted to jonin not ANBU. His strength will be canon but he obviously chose a different life in this story. A comment I received a while back was interesting, it said that Naruto could go out with a few girls before he makes his ultimate choice. That got me thinking and I realised it was great. I plan to write out a few cute little dates… Maybe a mini arc? What do you think? If this gets enough of a response than the girls on the pairing poll will be given a shot at Naruto in the order from least to most votes. Those with zero won't be given a shot so if you want to see a date with a specific character vote now! If you don't see your favourite character on the pole then leave a comment and I may consider it. As always don't flame this story if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	11. Chapter 11 - My Elements Part 2

Crimson Fracture

**Bold** – Kyuubi talking

**Bold and Underline** – Kyuubi thinking

_Italics_ – Thoughts

**_Bold and Italics_** – Jutsu or Shinobi Techniques

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The respective owner is Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Chapter 11 – My Elements Part 2

Time Skip – 6 Months Later

Naruto proudly looked out into the forest, or what was left of it. Over the 6 month training period Naruto had to admit the hardest part was learning the elements proper circulation. Once he got the hang of it he started pumping out jutsu in no time. The blonde had mastered all the available fire scrolls he had and vowed to further his proficiency when they got back to Konoha. When Naruto asked what S class jutsu Itachi had, Itachi face palmed. He did know one but it was **_Amaterasu, _**and in order to use it you needed the sharingan. It was possible to teach the technique to the blonde but he would not be able to use it, in fact the only people who can use it have to master the sharingan when they are young and perform the technique in a life or death situation. That will cause the bloodline to evolve to its final form the mangekyo. After Naruto heard that he went with creating his own jutsu for the remainder of the time he had. Naruto had secretly asked Kurama that night if she knew any techniques that would be classified as S rank that he could perform. To his surprise she didn't even hesitate and told him that he would be learning **_Amaterasu_**'s forgotten corresponding technique. While **_Amaterasu _**meant heavenly illumination it was pitch black and burned slowly. He would be learning **_Jigoku Uranai. _**Which meant hell's divination, it was bright white and burned hotter than the sun. Kurama assured Naruto that it would be very difficult to use and should always be used as a last resort. **_Amaterasu _**originated from the eyes and with over use would completely burn the user's eyes out, while **_Jigoku Uranai _**was expelled from the lungs and if used more than 5 times a day it would burst your lungs and cause you to suffocate and bleed to death. After he heard that Naruto was unsure if he wanted to learn it. After a few days of mulling it over Naruto decided he needed to take the chance because he was going to get strong so he could protect all of his friends. Literally burning up the last month he had on fire jutsu Naruto had finally mastered the S ranked technique. That was actually what turned the forest into a pile of ash and left Itachi standing with his jaw on the ground. Looking to his left Naruto saw Itachi still standing there with his mouth open. Naruto wondered what was going through his sensei's mind right now.

_"Naruto… Just… Burned," _Itachi was still having trouble collecting his thoughts. Taking a few quick breaths he realised he had been standing still for several minutes and needed to analyse this new information quickly. _"Ok… I gave the kid one month to create a technique. I figured it would be strong but at most it was only going to be an A rank. Clearly I was wrong because that was deffinatly stronger than anything I have ever seen and it seems on par to the __**Amaterasu**__. There is no way he can learn this fast, always recover from chakra exhaustion, and pull new techniques out of his butt. Normally I would assume that he was getting outside help but we are here alone and I have a gejutsu barrier surrounding our location. He must be getting help from the Kyuubi. I know Naruto has told me the Kyuubi isn't bad but why else would it help him so much. I should approach Naruto about this later before it gets to out of hand. I will move him to the next location then watch him closely."_

"I am very impressed Naruto-kun but I would advise you to use that as a last resort."

"Ok, sensei. What are we going to do now? If I can remember correctly it is time we switch over to training the earth affinity."

"Correct, now follow me." Turning around Itachi started to walk away. Several moments later Naruto fell into step beside him and they continued their conversation.

"Why are we moving locations sensei?"

"We are going to a more appropriate environment for the earth element. As I have mastered fire we did not need any training aides to help you. But since my control over earth isn't perfect we will be going to an area where the power and ease of the jutsu will be easier to accomplish. If you really want, when you master a jutsu you can also go just outside of the area to practice them to see the difference. Is this Ok with you?"

"Sure lead the way."

Soon the duo fell into a very sedate walking pace. Itachi figured that since Naruto learned so fast he must have some basic idea for elemental manipulation. Itachi was going to give the blonde a C rank jutsu and tell him to start. He was then going to hide in the trees and see how long it took the kid to do anything. If the kid got the earth to move in an hour or so Itachi could definitely say that the kid was a prodigy hands down. Anything less than that and his theory would be confirmed that the kid was getting help from the Kyuubi. Itachi figured that it would only benefit Naruto if he admitted to it himself. Cutting himself from his thoughts Itachi saw that they were nearing the area.

"Naruto-kun we will be arriving shortly. The area is a small swamp with very good shade spots and a wide expanse. When we get there I will give you a C rank scroll then leave. I have to retrieve an important message from Konoha." Itachi hoped that his small lie would be enough.

"Sure thing sensei and look I can see the area now."

Walking into the swampy area Naruto was amazed. The ground was slightly soft and downtrodden. Sort of like it had been raining right before they got there. The air was moist and heavy. The heat wave that they were currently walking in seemingly disappeared and it transformed into this cool abode. The trees surrounded the whole area and were covered in moss. Vine like branches and leaves draped over the canopy of the trees and cascaded towards the ground. They provided makeshift targets and would be good for practicing jutsu. Looking to the right one could see the expanse Itachi was talking about. It was heavily shaded and as flat as a book. Turning to the left you could see the swamp and all of the creatures within it. Feeling something hit him in the back of the head Naruto turned around.

"Here you go Naruto-kun," Itachi said while placing the scroll in the younger blonde's hands. "I really have to go now." With that Itachi **_Shunshin_**ed away, or so Naruto thought.

Walking over to the expanse Naruto sat down and started reading the scroll. After a few seconds of scanning the scroll he decided that this jutsu was very weak. Pulling Kurama's thoughts forward Naruto started a mental conversation.

_"Ku-chan what do you think about this jutsu? It seems very weak and I don't want to spend a lot of time on it. Do you know anything that will help me channel this element better so I can finish it quickly."_

**"You are always so impatient Naruto. But if you really want to master this style quick you are in luck. The elemental minipulations are very similar. For this technique you expel mud from your lungs so when you are mixing and changing the properties of the chakra in your lungs all you have to do is make sure you change it to mud. Later when you have a better grasp of the element you can activate some jutsu by stomping your feet on the ground."**

_"Thank you for the advice Ku-chan."_

Looking up Naruto realised that he had been talking for a few minutes. Not really wanting to explore the potential of the jutsu Naruto didn't summon any clones. Looking at the scroll one more time Naruto yawned and got ready. Quickly flashing through the 7 hand signs Naruto called out the name of the jutsu.

**_"Doton: Bakuhatsu suru_****_Iwa!"_**

Then out of his mouth flew three slightly misshapen but sharp rock kunai. They flew out at the trees and struck them with a resounding amount of force. Naruto was surprised but still thought it sucked. He could easily deflect that with his own kunai if it was fired at him by an enemy. Feeling like he was done for the day Naruto sat down at the base of the tree and closed his eyes. he figured he could get in a little nap before Itachi got back.

* * *

Hidden Vanatge Point a few feet Away

Itachi was stunned and more than sure that the kid was getting help from the Kyuubi. He knew that any chunin in their right mind could have learned that jutsu in a couple hours maybe a full day if earth wasn't there natural affinity. But Naruto just performed the jutsu almost perfect on his first attempt only ten minutes after he opened up the scroll for petes sake. Right at that moment Itachi's resolve snapped on the inside, he was originally going to wait for Naruto to tell him about the Kyuubi helping him but he was progressing to fast. Just how was the demon fox helping him out? Deciding he needed to ask now before Naruto fell asleep Itachi walked out from his cover.

Naruto for his part almost had a heart attack. He had been resting peacefully underneath a tree when he started to see a branch on a tree a few feet away start to change shape. Thinking it was him just being a little sleepy Naruto closed his eyes again. He then heard a slight rustling and when he opened his eyes again he was face to face with his brother.

"Ahhhhhhhh!" Naruto screamed. "Can't you wake me up like a normal person?"

Not even bothering to respond to that Itachi started his talk with Naruto. He knew the blonde would be a little mad at him but family members mettle with the others when they need it the most, so here it goes.

"Naruto-kun I have been watching you for the past ten minutes and I saw you almost master a technique in that timeframe. I know you grow fast but that is impossible if left to your own devices. That means that the Kyuubi has been helping you more than I had expected. Now tell me to what extent that fox has been helping you and how you accomplish things so fast."

Naruto was conflicted with emotions. He was disappointed that another secret was found out and his brother had to spy on him, he was angry that Itachi couldn't accept that Kurama was more than just a demon fox and maybe she was actually going to help him and he was sad that he was going to have to tell more about his secret relationship with his tenant.

**"Tell him all you want but allude to the fact that I have a gender. I do not need any more misconceptions Naruto."**

_"All right Ku-chan."_

Taking a deep breath in Naruto readied himself to explain.

"First off never call Kyuubi just a fox. I told you before that the Kyuubi has been mislead its whole life. Now you ask to what extent the Kyuubi helps me and the answer to that is every night. We have developed a method where I can manifest myself in my mind at night and practice jutsu and theory for eight hours without being interrupted and my body physically rests as well. This is how I have been able to pick things up so quick. For example when I get stuck I can recall events from the previous night and apply them. So as you saw with doton I had never used it before but the concepts are almost the same so with some small modifications I performed it. Do you have any other questions?"

"No, but let me check one thing Naruto-kun."

"Ok."

Receiving Naruto's agreement Itachi walkied over to the blonde and lifted his shirt up and exposed his stomach.

"Alright Naruto channel some chakra."

Thinking it was a little weird having his brother so close Naruto did what he was told and hoped that Itachi would be satisfied with whatever he was looking for.

Itachi himself was also confused. When Naruto started channeling chakra Itachi expected to see the seal crumble away a little but instead it appeared on his stomach full force and even appeared to be stronger than the hokage described it. Deciding to let the matter go and inform the hokage upon their return Itachi let go of Naruto's shirt and stood back up.

"All right Naruto-kun I am satisfied that you are OK and that the Kyuubi is helping you. I want you to continue with the progressive scroll training method we started at the beginning of the year but now you are just using doton. Tomorrow I actually have an errand to run and I will be gone for the whole day. I will leave before you get up and return shortly after sunset. Are you Ok with that?"

"Yeah."

* * *

Next Day – Late Afternoon

Looking around Naruto was happy that he had almost mastered another jutsu. This one was taking him longer because he did not expel mud from his lungs, he actually had to externally manipulate rocks from the environment. He was having trouble until Kurama told him that it was no different than controlling flames that he expelled from his lungs. He just had to have the right mindset to completely manipulate a different element. She also admitted that fire probably came more naturally to him because of his ties with the Uchiha and herself. After that Naruto had gone back to his training with doubled efforts and it showed. He was able to control it a lot better. Hearing a rustling sound Naruto looked up and saw that it was almost sunset. Figuring that it was Itachi coming back Naruto just sat down in the middle of the clearing. When the rustling sound kept getting louder but never seeming to get closer Naruto decided it was odd that Itachi would make that much noise. That was when Naruto realised he was starring at a genjutsu. Mentally berating himself for falling for such a low jutsu Naruto discreetly put his hands together and dispelled the genjutsu for a second. He only dispelled it for a second in order to see who was doing it. Spotting his enemy to the left Naruto started using some of his higher multilayered tricks. Dispelling the jutsu again he activated one of his own that made the enemy see what they wanted to see most at the moment. That in turn just ended up with the Shinobi thinking he had a fake Naruto still in his trap. Quickly running towards the Shinobi Naruto had to quickly drop to the ground when a kunai skimmed past his jugular. Looking up he say the kunai hilt deep in the tree next to him and that all the genjutsu were dispelled.

"Ha, you think such a puny trick would work on me. You are 30 years to young small one to even lay a scratch on me."

Looking all around Naruto finally spotted the man, he was standing next to a tree a few meters away. He was about as tall as Naruto but looked to be about 50 years old. The man had a Konoha headband on with the symbol scratched. He wasn't overly muscular or big but he was able to cast decent genjutsu. Naruto realised if he paid more attention this man's styles was rather weak compared to his own and the Uchiha.

"My name is Stark and you have been in my area way to long. I normally like to avoid conflict with Konoha because as you can see I am not really welcome there anymore. I would let you go but then ANBU members would come to this location and chew me out. So it looks like I will have to kill you. Prepare to die!"

Upon saying that Stark threw three elongated kunai at Naruto. Barely noticing them Naruto was hard pressed to dodge. Quickly rolling to the side Naruto's mind was moving a mile a minute.

_"What am I going to do? I can't die, I have to protect my friends. I never got to tell someone that I loved, that I loved them. He is at least high chunin. Am I good enough to fight him? Why can't niisan be here. Ahhhh!"_

**"Calm down Naruto."**

Hearing Kurama's voice Naruto momentarily paused his movements. He sighed to himself she was right. He would have to calm down if he wanted to accomplish anything. Looking around he noticed that he didn't see Stark anywhere… until it was too late.

Feeling a tearing in his side Naruto quickly pulled away. There in his side was a huge slash from just below the armpit to his stomach. Reeling back his fist Naruto laced a small amount of chakra into his palm and hit Stark square on his right shoulder blade. The man hissed in pain and jumped back with his right arm limp at his side.

"What the hell did you do brat!"

"I simply used my taijutsu old man, now let's finish this."

Not giving the man any time to respond Naruto quickly ran forward with a kunai in hand. When he was just a few feet away Naruto channeled some of his raw chakra into the blade and swung it at the man. Seeing the impeding danger Stark pulled out one of his special kunai and put up a simple guard. What he did not expect was the force that the kid could put behind his strikes. When Naruto's kunai impacted with the other, his opponenets shattered. Tiny pieces of metal lodging into the older man's right eye and Naruto's strike continued on its path and slashed the man's chest. Jumping back Stark was bewildered, he was being killed off by a mere child. Deciding he was having enough Stark figured he had just enough chakra and stamina left to use one last good attack. Going through the necessary hand seals he called out the attack.

**"****_Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu_**!"

This caught Naruto off guard and as a result he took the brunt of the attack head on. The only thing that saved him from extreme damage was his mastery over fire was greater than Stark's. just when the flame was about to hit him and it was the farthest from Stark Naruto took over the dragon and made it glance off of his side. That resulted in Naruto flying straight into a tree and the dragon colliding with the ground and exploding.

Several miles away Itachi saw the explosion and sensed a foreign chakra signature near Naruto. Fearing the worst Itachi tripled his speed and vowed that he would never forgive himself if he let anymore of his family die.

Falling to his knees Stark was panting heavily. He had used up most of his chakra keeping up his 24/7 genjutsu that allowed him to run from ANBU. So when he ran into this kid he figured he wouldn't need to use any taxing jutsu and could kill him easily. Well that didn't go as expected. The kid was very well trained and seemed to have better control over fire and genjutsu than him. He was certain that the kid wasn't dead but he knew he was heavily injured. Looking up he could see the figure slowly walking over to where he was crouching. Naruto was slowly hobbling his way over. He had a kunai in his right hand and his left arm was hanging limply at his side. When he connected with the tree his arm snapped back and dislocated from his shoulder, he also had a nasty head wound that was bleeding uncontrollably. His vision was slightly blurry and he could of swore he heard Kurama telling him he would be Ok. His shirt was burnt right off and his pants were singed black. Stopping no more than a few feet away Naruto raised his kunai and pointed it at the man.

"Is that the best you got old man," Naruto wasn't even sure what he was saying anymore. It seemed like his dark personality was coming out. "Because if that is all you got you are going to die yah old bastard."

With that Naruto rushed towards Stark and swung his kunai hard. Stark still suffering from exhaustion weakly held up his blade. The two connected and Naruto broke through the guard easily. Seeing his kunai crack a little Naruto did the only thing he could to make it stronger. He used the only doton jutsu he knew that didn't need any hand seals. The last thing Stark ever saw was a stone tipped kunai swinging at his neck and a far off look of sorrow in his killers eyes.

* * *

_"I can see the clearing…" _Itachi thought. Quickly picking up the pace even more he could feel Naruto's chakra getting very, very low. Jumping through the last of the trees Itachi was greeted with a sight he will never forget. There in front of him was his 10 year old brother with a kunai hilt deep in a man's neck. Blood was splattered everywhere and Itachi could see tears flowing out of Naruto's eyes. His arm appeared to be broken or dislocated and he was burnt as if he had been hurt by a fire attack. Seeing the blonde start to lose his footing Itachi figured the kid was finally falling unconscious. Deciding he suffered enough Itachi ran over and caught the kid. Looking down at Naruto's stomach he could see that he must have been very hard pressed because the seal on his stomach was still lit up. But that wasn't what really surprised Itachi because when Itachi looked at Naruto's chest he could see a very intricate Uzumaki swirl tattoo on the blonde's chest. It had a tribal appearance and had four circles surrounding it. On closer inspection Itachi could see four symbols inside the circles, they were: flames, waves, rocks, and lightning. Thinking about Itachi realized the kid must have awakened his latent bloodline. It seems he has to go through a life and death situation. Laying Naruto down Itachi set up camp and set up some very powerful genjutsu with the sharingan. The kid needed rest and he was going to make sure the kid slept as long as he needed and when he woke up they would talk about it.

* * *

Mindscape

Naruto wasn't really sure how long he had been sitting on the spare bed in Kurama's house. He just passed out went straight to the room and locked the door. He was fading in and out and every so often he could here Kurama's voice. It sounded like she just wanted to talk about what happened. But what was there to talk about? He killed a man because we were in his territory – granted he was exiled from Konoha, but who would want to protect that village of idiots any way. All Naruto could picture was the man's defeated look as he plunged the kunai kilt deep into the man's neck and held it there until all life disappeared from his eyes. he was disgusted with himself. But at the same time he knew that he would have to continue to kill if he wanted to protect his friends. Deciding it would be best to talk about it he finally walked over to the door and unlocked it. The next thing he knew was the door was thrown open and he was brought into a tight hug.

**"Are you all right Naruto?"**

Smiling to himself Naruto let his tears flow once again.

"Yah… I-I guess I am OK, but why did I have to kill that man. I know he attacked me but why does it have to end with him dying."

**"Naruto look at me."**

Tilting his eyes downward he met Kurama's eyes and saw a flurry of emotions in them.

**"If you didn't kill him he would have killed you. That would of made all of your friends very sad and your family as well. Just think what Sasuke would do if he lost you too. He would probably shut himself off from the world and only focus on killing one man for vengeance. Also what about us, how do you think I would feel if you died?" **Looking away for a second a lone tear fell from her face and hit the ground. **"You are the only person who treats me as a real person. You talk to me and interact with me. You actually care and respect me. I never knew I could be this happy yet here I am having conversations with you. I know killing is hard but you became a Shinobi and now you will have to deal with that. Killing never gets any easier but you may find a purpose in it, for example if someone tried to kills your friends you would go after them. I am not saying that you have to get over it right away but at least talk to your brother tomorrow OK."**

"OK…"

Sighing to herself Kurama decided she needed to distract Naruto for now.

**"Naruto do you happen to remember a promise you made three years ago?"**

Not really sure what this had to do with anything Naruto just thought about it for a bit. Coming up with nothing he responded.

"No why do you ask."

**"Well if I were the ladies that you promised I would be pretty pissed that my date has been postponed for a whole entire year and I haven't even received a card or anything to know when you were going to return."**

Naruto felt like he was hit by a truck. He had completely forgotten about the date he promised Ino, Sakura, and Hinata. He had been so busy training it skipped his mind, to top it all off he didn't have a good explanation as to why he forgot either. If he said he was busy training they would think he cared about training more than them. Seeing Naruto face scrunch up Kurama couldn't help but let a small giggle escape.

"What is so funny Ku-chan? I am in serious trouble here."

**"Look at the tough boy, scared of three little girls…"**

"Hey lets get one thing straight."

**"And what is that Naruto?"**

"I am not scared…" Naruto turned away from Kurama. "I am terrified."

Try as she might Kurama fell to the ground laughing. Several minutes later when she finally stopped she had an epiphany.

**"Oh, Naruto I just thought of a way to help you."**

"What is it?"

**"I will teach you how to be a gentleman and how to give girls compliments that they will like. If you want my help you will come here every-"**

"Done, deal, whatever I accept!"

Kurama smirked at the kids eagerness.

**"I was going to say every third day, but it's good to see you so dedicated. Promise me that tomorrow you will talk with you brother and then we can start on your first lesson."**

"Ok Ku-chan I will talk to my brother in the morning."

**"Very good, now I am going to have to ask you to change me to look like one of your friends so we can simulate a date Ok. We will be doing this every time unless I feel like you really lack in one area and then we will have to slow down and work really hard."**

With that Naruto focused really hard and made Kurama look like Ino. Deciding to have a little fun Kurama struck a slightly seductive pose.

**"Want to play a little game before we begin… Naruto~kun?"**

Naruto groaned for two reasons; one – he was kind of interested in what kind of games Ino/Ku-chan meant and two – this was going to be a very long half of a year.

* * *

**Jutsu:**

**Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu: **Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique

**Doton: Bakuhatsu suru Iwa: **Earth Release: Exploding Rock (Weak Adaptation)

**Shunshin: **Body Flicker Technique

**Amaterasu: **Heavenly Illumination

**Jigoku Uranai: **Hell's Divination (Original)

A/N: Sorry for the wait. Now there are some things I would like to address. I received a very well thought out PM by one of my favourite readers. As you guys may know this is my first story and his comments have been helping me. Anyway right now I am about 50/50 on making this a harem. I will not include any more than what I have on the poll now. I figure I can keep the pole results and use them for the main pairing in the harem. I will still use the number of votes thing for the dates though. If you guys really want this leave a comment. If there is an overwhelming amount of responses I will update the story summary a tad and make the pairing final. I would also like to say that updates will probably come weekly. My semester at school is a real drag. Also if you have questions ask away, I will try my best to answer them as long as it doesn't give the story away. As always don't flame this story if ya hate my guts or this story, ja ne.

Ambrax Demise


	12. Small break

Sorry readers but this story will be on temporary hiatus. There are some things I need to straighten out in my life and they are taking up a lot of my mind. I won't lose track of the story because I have up to chapter fourteen actually planned out in my story book at home. It shouldn't be too long.

Small side note was over the march/spring break I actually got to go to Europe. I must say I had a wonderful time. Shout out to all my readers who live in that wonderful part of the world.

ja ne,

Ambrax Demise


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